Making / things that I break / to fix them / and break them again / I pass my time
photo taken 2006 in Granada, Spain from a moving car

Yesterday I watched this Frontline documentary about kids getting life imprisonment. According to the website, “the United States is one of the only countries in the world that allows children under 18 to be sentenced to life without parole.” This topic has interested me ever since learning that my current state of residence, NC, has sentenced children ages 13 and 14 to life imprisonment. Youth can be tried as adults in every state in the union, and over 2300 people are serving life imprisonment without parole, for crimes they committed under the age of 18.

Some other relevant information that highlights the inadequacy of punishing children with life in jail:

– Youth lack adult capabilities: kids brains aren’t as developed as adult’s brains, particularly in areas related to impulse control, risk assessment and moral reasoning.

– Racial/Class Bias: black youth arrested for murder are significantly more likely to be sentenced to life without parole than white youth arrested for the same crime. White youth are more likely than black youth to hire private counsel.

– Cycles of Abuse: youth imprisoned for life are frequently victims of parental neglect and abuse.

– Prison Rape: youth placed in adult penitentiaries are frequent targets of rape by older inmates.

This information is particularly striking when considering that three NC death row inmates have been freed within the past six months, with judges citing inadequate evidence and flaws in their defense. Today the NC General Assembly held a special hearing on the death penalty (we currently have an unofficial moratorium on all executions).

If these adults have been represented improperly, what’s the likelihood that children serving life sentences have been as well? I hate to think of the wasted potential of so many children… just passing time.