|
|
|
There would be no battle now to keep horrific killers under the age of 18 at the time of their crimes if it were not for the misuse of the brain research about the formation of the frontal lobe in adolescents. This fairly recent research that shows full formation of the frontal lobe of the brain extends into the 20's. Teens are more susceptible (though it still varies widely from individual to individual) to peer pressure, impulse control problems, and have a more difficult time evaluating the long term consequences of their actions - as if every parent in the world did not already know this! This Research on juvenile brain development was used to great effect in the Supreme Court Case Roper vs. Simmons, which overturned the use of the death penalty for juvenile offenders, but may be being overused to excuse all sorts of things not at all excusable.Recently, a lot has been made of what has become known as Brain Overclaim Syndrome -- a syndrome that is evident in excusing behavior in juveniles due to the natural delayed development of various parts of the brain. Major national publications such as the New York Times Magazine have referred to this research. Stephen J. Morse of Pennsylvania Law School has written an paper which cautions against applying this medical research too broadly in the criminal justice arena and does an excellent job of helping to differentiate what brain development science can and cannot be used to "excuse". After reading this paper, our point about what can and cannot be excused based on age becomes clear. |