Congressional Digest

Excerpt

Minors are treated differently by the Nation’s criminal justice system. Their cases are often handled by different courts, and when they are tried as adults, the U.S. Supreme Court has held that they cannot be given the death penalty under any circumstances or life without parole for any crime short of homicide.
The Court has recognized that minors’ brains are different — they’re still developing, they process information differently, and they sometimes lack the judgment and impulse control of adults. But should the Court take this into account when deciding when a minor must be informed of his or he…