the death sentence for those who committed a capital offense at age 16 or 17. Many people fear that the increase in juvenile murders will spur renewed interest in executing teens or locking them away for the rest of their lives. Prosecutors say many of these adolescents must be executed or given life sentences because they are depraved killers who pose a serious threat to society. Others-contend juveniles should be given the opportunity to put their lives back together. District Court juvenile Judge Robert E. Lewis of Gadsen, Ala says, Ive seen 15-year-old kids who were 25 years old, streetwise. Some have reached the point where they are not anything in this world but vicious predators. The jungle is the only place predators can roam free. A civilized society is not supposed to have predator at large. The message ought to be that it is a no-no to go out and kill, and if you do you may pay for it with your life.+ The politics of it all is that many prosecutors will seek the death penalty more for juveniles who kill-as a plea bargain tool to encourage the youngsters to plea to life without parole. For a 14-15-16 year old, the thought of being strapped in the electric chair or death itself, is so frightening that they are coerced into pleading for life in prison. Every politician is promising to get tough on juveniles. It is the new catchword. We will probably see even more call for the death penalty for juveniles for re-election sake. A 1988 study of fourteen juveniles on death row in four states concluded they had brain abnormalities, low IQs, poor mental test scores, a and serious psychiatric problems. All had suffered severe head injuries as children. Only a psychiatrist before trial had even examined five of the fourteen subjects. Although Troy Dugan was borderline mentally retarded and extremely mentally ill when he killed a man at age 15, today he lives on death row in Louisiana's Angola Prison. His parents fed him liquor form the ...
