Should kids go to jail?

[panther]

Under-14s should not be held responsible for their actions and should never be locked up in children’s homes or young offender institutions, according to The Prison Reform Trust.
Their report calls for the criminal responsibility age to be raised from 10 to 14, claiming incarceration doesnt deter under-14s, since 75% of them reoffend within a year of release. Do you agree?

[cashman]

is there no approved schools anymore?

[jaysay]

Originally Posted by panther

Under-14s should not be held responsible for their actions and should never be locked up in children’s homes or young offender institutions, according to The Prison Reform Trust.
Their report calls for the criminal responsibility age to be raised from 10 to 14, claiming incarceration doesnt deter under-14s, since 75% of them reoffend within a year of release. Do you agree?

It seems a nonsence that kids at that age are walking around with knives and guns do these clowns not watch programs like last nights Panarama

[Debbie J]

Of course 10 to 14 year olds should be punished. My 10 year old knows right from wrong so if he was caught with a knife or robbing someone he knows the consequences, therefore would expect punishment.

[flashy]

my dad went to an 'approve skoo' in Warrington when he was ickle

back in the day they used to send kids who where 'naughty' to Brockhall because they thought there was something 'mentally' wrong with them, of course there never was and they usually ended up with some sort of mental disability with being around folk who did had a disability

if a woman got pregnant out of wedlock she was sent to Brockhall, if a kid stole some sweets, it was sent to Brockhall thus creating even more psychological problems

[Margaret Pilkington]

I'm not sure........maybe boot camps of some description.......away from their home environment....with tough instructors....doing lots of physical things as well as perhaps community service......but stuff that will make them so tired that they will not have time to socialise with other young villains...or if they do socialise then it should be strictly monitored.
They should certainly be removed from the things that they enjoy...ps3s and such like.

I think that at 14 they KNOW what is right and what is wrong, they should be aware that if they do wrong there will be consequences.

[BERNADETTE]

At what age do they propose that kids be held responsible?? Most kids know the difference between right and wrong at a younger age then ten even. Not sure prison is the right place to send them but they should definately know there are consequences if they commit criminal offences.

[polly]

Originally Posted by flashytart

my dad went to an 'approve skoo' in Warrington when he was ickle

back in the day they used to send kids who where 'naughty' to Brockhall because they thought there was something 'mentally' wrong with them, of course there never was and they usually ended up with some sort of mental disability with being around folk who did had a disability

if a woman got pregnant out of wedlock she was sent to Brockhall, if a kid stole some sweets, it was sent to Brockhall thus creating even more psychological problems

And look at Brockhall now!! A haven for the YUPIEs of the 80's now they have families.

I think there was some medical research some years ago that set out to show that 'criminals' brains did work slightly differently to those who are law abiding, so let us not dismiss this theory until we have further knowledge.

In the meantime I would contend that it is criminal of the authorities not to remove 'criminal' teenagers from their home enviroment. they need to be exposed to other behavioral standards.Also society desperately needs protecting from them.
The cost of their removal should be borne by the families themselves who have usually, if only in part, created the problem.

[Nori Brick]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

I'm not sure........maybe boot camps of some description.......away from their home environment....with tough instructors....doing lots of physical things as well as perhaps community service......but stuff that will make them so tired that they will not have time to socialise with other young villains...or if they do socialise then it should be strictly monitored.
They should certainly be removed from the things that they enjoy...ps3s and such like.

I think that at 14 they KNOW what is right and what is wrong, they should be aware that if they do wrong there will be consequences.

what happend to the days that when you comited a crime you was given the chouce of either serveing your country in the armed forces or going to prison an become a carear criminal. they still do that in america so why not here?

[Margaret Pilkington]

Nori...I'm not quite sure why you picked out my post to quote......and I can't make out whether you agree with my sentiments or not.

I'm sure that the army do not want criminals in their ranks.....but I am sure that a spot of old fashioned army discipline would not go amiss....and if you do not agree with prison(you allude to this fact by stating that it produces career criminals)...what would be your suggestion to dealing with criminal behaviour?

[accyman]

if the current punishments arnt working then the punishments should be made harder

[derekgas]

Well I see it this way, when I was a kid, I never met anybody who wanted to go back to borstal, but the equivelant these days is so much fun, they are queuing up to go back seemingly.

[banjoman]

When I was a kid I didnt dream of things like knives, guns,drugs etc.... Worst we did was kocking on doors and running away I think. Nowadays things like stealing is an "acceptable offense" because of bigger offences like murder or armed robbery. I disagree with this. To me a crime is a crime, and stopping the smaller ones will prevent people moving onto bigger ones.

Biggest issue I see is parents. Most people bring their kids up to be decent with morals and respect. Unfortunately there is a certain element that dont, and the kids copy what their parents do. Therefore they think its acceptable to behave the way they do. My kid is nearly 3 and he knows the difference in general terms between right and wrong because me and his mum instill that in him. He says please and thankyou, and is well behaved at public events (he actually sat quietly through a 40 minute wedding when even I was getting bored). I know not every kid is the same, but I am a strong believer that the actions of parents at a young age can dramatically change the mannerisms of a child

[Bonnyboy]

If a 10 -14 yr old commit’s a crime then of course they should be punished and as accyman said, if the present punishments aren’t doing the trick then make the punishment more severe.

[polly]

Originally Posted by banjoman

When I was a kid I didnt dream of things like knives, guns,drugs etc.... Worst we did was kocking on doors and running away I think. Nowadays things like stealing is an "acceptable offense" because of bigger offences like murder or armed robbery. I disagree with this. To me a crime is a crime, and stopping the smaller ones will prevent people moving onto bigger ones.

Biggest issue I see is parents. Most people bring their kids up to be decent with morals and respect. Unfortunately there is a certain element that dont, and the kids copy what their parents do. Therefore they think its acceptable to behave the way they do. My kid is nearly 3 and he knows the difference in general terms between right and wrong because me and his mum instill that in him. He says please and thankyou, and is well behaved at public events (he actually sat quietly through a 40 minute wedding when even I was getting bored). I know not every kid is the same, but I am a strong believer that the actions of parents at a young age can dramatically change the mannerisms of a child

Well done on having a child who will sit through a 40 mins service, many wouldn't.

The trouble is a small proportion of children/teenagers just don't know the difference between right and wrong, they simply have not been taught it.