Editorial Board: The teen arrested in Georgia school shooting is not an adult, and shouldn't be treated like one
Editorial Board: The teen arrested in Georgia school shooting is not an adult, and shouldn't be treated like one
Charging 14-year-old Colt Gray as an adult in Georgia school shooting reveals a nation that has forgotten the purpose of its juvenile justice system.
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I do wonder if the reasoning behind trying teen shooters as adults is to ensure that their record sticks into adulthood. When you are charged as a juvenile your records are expunged upon turning 18. I certainly would want to make sure that this person could never legally own a gun again.
When you are charged as a juvenile your records are expunged upon turning 18
A lot of people think this but it isn't true. In Georgia (and most other states) you have to ask a judge to expunge your record and they have to give the prosecutor's office an opportunity to respond before the judge can decide if the person with the juvenile record has been rehabilitated and their record should be expunged. There's nothing automatic about the process.
Well that is certainly a comfort and gives more credit towards not trying and sentencing teens like they're adults.