This week there was horrendous carnage in Arkansas.

Two young boys shot and killed four classmates and a teacher.

One was 11 years old and the other 13.

There is a question whether they should be tried as adults or as juveniles. Should they be permited to get out of jail in just a few years or should they be locked away for life as would be an adult accused of a similar crime.

Rev. John

-- Anonymous, March 26, 1998

Answers

The worse thing that we can do is rush to change the law so that we can try these two boys as adults. No matter how horrendous the crime, we should let the law take its course. Care must be taken when making changes in our laws. The possibility of missuse by an overzealous DA makes me want to leave the law as it is. The parents should be held responsible for the behaviour of the children. The parents are not guilty of murder but certainly neglect in the nurture of their children.

-- Anonymous, March 26, 1998

I think that Yes, kids who have committed serious crimes should be tried as adults. Think about it, if they have the knowledge to commit a crim so harsh, they should get the punishment any other individual would. If the children are way too young and happen to accidentally pick up a gun and fire it or something like that. Then their parents should be responsible for their actions. But if they have been proven guilty in the court of law, they have the common sense they need to have and they know what they did. They deserve what any older person would get.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2001

Yes, I think the juveniles should be treated as adult because if they are big enough to do the crime it means that they are big enough to be responsible for the crime.

-- Anonymous, April 18, 2001

I don't think that they should be tried as adults.

-- Anonymous, April 25, 2001

I think that juveniles should be tried as adults, because if a 10 year old doesn't know right from wrong then we need to show them, and if they do and they commit the crime anyways, well then they deserve exactly what is coming to them.

-- Anonymous, May 04, 2001

I think that juveniles should not be tried as an adult. m In that case, then there will not be a diffenrt between who is an adult and who is not. So if the law wants to tried "juveniles" as adults, then we as amreicans should let all juevnile make adults choices.

-- Anonymous, February 18, 2002

Yes, I do think they should be tried as adults because they did not just kill one person they killed five people.I know that they are young but they knew what they were doing. I do not think that they should do life but until they are at least twenty-one years of age.

-- Anonymous, March 21, 2002