time he was six years old to calm him down. His original defense attorneys never presented any of this information at his trial. Victor Strieb, a law professor at Cleveland State University says, It is basic human notion that you dont hold juveniles to the same standard. Politicians who say the death penalty will cure the homicide problem are like snake oil salesmen. Justice Scalia examined State and Federal laws and jury decisions regarding capital punishment for juveniles. In concluding that the evidence of a national consensus against capital punishment for juveniles was inadequate, he relied upon the fact that fifteen of the thirty seven states have capital punishment precluded its imposition upon 16 year olds, while twelve foreclosed its imposition upon 17 year olds. Justice OConnor, concurring in part and in the judgment, agreed that no national consensus existed rejection the execution of 16 or 17 year old capital murders, and that the death sentences should be affirmed. She also stated that the Court, in the Eighth Amendment Jurisprudence, should also determine whether the punishment imposed was proportional to the blameworthiness of the defendant. In a nationwide poll conducted for TIME and CNN, those responding expressed strong disapproval of the death penalty for the retarded, although a majority supported executing teenagers. The United States is one of the few countries in the world that executes juvenile offenders. There are only six countries that are known to have executed juvenile offenders in the 90s: Pakistan, Saudi Arabia Iran, Nigeria, Yemen-and the US. We should be embarrassed to find ourselves in that company that other countries are known for human rights violations. Of the thirty-eight states that allow the death penalty, fifteen set the age at 18, four set it at age 17, and 21 have a minimum of 16 years of age or no minimum at all. Because American justice grinds on so slowly, because the appeals process in dea...
