Responsible for the Crimes of Their Children Essay Example

law that would stop or reduce the number of Wessels 2 juvenile crime arrests.

Most states and or cities have a law that holds parents responsible for their children’s crimes. The problem with that is many parents think these laws are going too far with parental responsibilities. Sometimes the parents should be held responsible for the crimes if they know their child is committing, and doing nothing to stop them. However charging parents for their child’s crime is wrong. It’s the child’s fault if he or she gets caught for committing a crime.

Parents should know where and what their kid is doing at all time, but they can’t always stop a child from doing something wrong.Therefore parents should raise their children to have quality morals and if are good parents and their child commits crime they should not be held responsible. It would be up to the judge to decide if they are good parents or bad parents. One such parental responsibility act in Silverton Oregon exists. Lawmakers in Silverton wanted to reduce juvenile crime.

They decided to start charging parents with the crime committed by their child. In one case a lady got charged because her son stole some cologne. She was found not guilt because friends, family, and doctors testified on her behalf the she was a good parent.So the judge decided to let her go(Blackmun). That was a perfect case where the judge decided that she was a good parent. That is the only fair way to decide if a parent is a good or bad parent.

That is exactly how every case should go. Parents should be charged for the crime

if they are in some way responsible for the crime. Parents are also being charged for their childs truancy. In Baltimore at Canton Wessels 3 Middle School eight parents went to court because they repeatedly failed to get their children to campus on time. Four of the parents were found guilty.

When each could get up to 30 days in jail, a $500 fine or even lose custody they realized the severity of their offense. A National Trend: In Kalamazoo, local law enforcement groups said that they plan to use part of two federal grants amounting to almost $600,000 to fight truancy, which Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney James Gregart called “a gateway to more serious forms of delinquent behaviors”(Dominguez). Charging a parent for their child’s crime is unconstitutional. It violates the fifth amendment, which is “Rights of the Accused”. It states that a erson cannot be held responsible for a crime unless convicted by a jury.

Already it is known that the parents did not commit the crime; therefore, cannot be held responsible for a crime committed by their child. According to Keith Watters, President of the National Bar Association, “I do not believe parents should be held accountable for the criminal acts of their children. The history of American law has never held another person accountable for the misdeeds of another. Criminal law seeks to deter and punish the wrongdoer.

A criminal act is the conscious choice of a wrongdoer and not of another person, parent or friend”(P7).It should not even be a possible choice to charge a good parent with a crime committed by their child. If found guilty parents cant be jailed, and

be maid to pay fines, restitution, community service, or take parenting classes. Among penalties for juveniles are family counseling, boot camp training, community service, and being sent to a juvenile home. Wessels 4 The punishment to the parents that seems to be the best result is parenting classes. Where the court sends parents in Silverton, Oregon for training in handling their kids in trouble, their teacher is Mike Hammond.

Classes teach parents to be strict if necessary and to take an active role in their kids life. Hammond calls it “Authoritative Parenting”(Williams). It is very important to know where most juvenile crime occurs and what type of crime is being committed. Juvenile crime has been escalating alarmingly in recent years. Juvenile arrests for serious violent crime rose 67% from 1986 to 1995. Arrests jumped 63% for robbery, 76% for aggravated assault and 90% for murder.

More than half of all crimes against teens happen near or at school. Almost one fourth of all violent crimes against teens occur at school.Children are 11 times more likely to be violent if they have no father in the home and 6 times if their parents aren’t married. Children not living with biological parents are 4 times as much likely to or are suspended or expelled from school. Not only does having a father at home head off violent behavior, it also helps boost student achievement this article said(Robinson). Good parents can have bad kids.

Kids misbehave despite the best efforts of their parents. Parents can not always be there at their child’s side to guide them, it is also possible that a parent can’t stop them even if they

were present when a crime was committed.A 5 foot 5 inch single mother could probably not stop her 6 foot 2 inch, 220 pound son from doing anything. Teenagers are old enough to understand right from wrong. Research shows that parental responsibility laws don’t have much impact on juvenile crime.

Most bad kids do not care if their parents are charged, therefore they do Wessels 5 not think twice about committing a crime. If a child is consistently in trouble, there comes a point where the parent has no control. Does it make sense to charge the parent when the kid is a little hellion?The answer is no it doesn’t because you are sending a message to the child that only your parents will get in to trouble if you commit a crime. On the other hand, it can be said that it is the parents responsibilities to know what your child is doing at all times and who your child is hanging out with.

Once parents bring their child home from the hospital it is their responsibility for the next 18 years. It is the parents responsibility to teach the child right from wrong. It is the child’s right to have health care, be educated, and have housing. Parents need to provide all of these until their child moves out as an adult.Glenda Hatchett, chief presiding judge of the Juvenile Court for Fulton County in Atlanta says, “I don’t think across the board parents should be criminally charged, but I do think we have to raise our consciousness about parents being more responsible for their children. We’ve got to get parents to understand that

they have to be proactive and ask questions, who are your children’s friends? Do you know where your children are”(p 11)? Law Makers need to be more strict with juvenile offenders.

They need to stop pointing the finger at the parents and start pointing it at the children.A dozen states have a punishment for juvenile delinquents called a blended sentence. Which is when certain juvenile offenders, usually those who have committed violent but not extreme or murderous crimes, serve both a juvenile sentence and an adult sentence. Which puts juveniles in jail with adults, which is supposed to scare them straight.

If juveniles are Wessels 6 found guilty the sentence it does not give them an adult criminal record, which is good(Belluck). In conclusion, it should be known that parents are not to blame for their child’s crimes.Most juvenile crime is the result of peer pressure and the children’s group of friends. Parents can’t stop their child from committing such in act if they are not present. It is the parents responsibility to teach the child what is right, but that isn’t always enough.

Only in certain cases of abuse or neglect then the parent should be held accountable for the child’s actions.. So it is up to the child and only the child to do what is right in most cases. More strict laws should be adopted around the country to scare kids into not having wanting to commit crime.Many cities and states are on the right path in doing so. Wessels 7 Bibliography Belluck, Pam.

“Fighting Youth Crime, Some States Blend Adults and Juvenile Justice. ” New York Times Feb. 11, 1998. P.

1 col 5. ProQuest 1 Dec.

2007. Blackmun, Maya. “Parental Responsibility Laws. ” Los Angeles Times. 16 Oct. 1995.

SIRS. Portage District Library. 11 Nov. 2007. Dominguez, Alex.

“Schools Make Parents Pay for Kids Truancy. ” Kalamazoo Gazette 26 Jan. 1999, sec A:2. 2 Dec.

2007. - primary source. Robinson, Matthew. “Juvenile Crime in Fatherless Homes, Public Schools.

What Causes School Violence? Investors Business Daily. 12 Nov. 1997. AOL. 5 Dec.

2007. “Should Parents be Responsible for Crimes of their Children? ” Jet. 27 May. 1996.

General OneFile. Gale. Portage District Library. 11 Nov. 2007.

“The Harsh Beginnings. ” 13 November 1998. [online] AOL. 4 Dec. 2007. Williams, Gurney III.

“Authoritative Parenting. ” The American Legion Magazine. (Jan. 1997):32. Rpt.

In Family. Vol. 5. Ed.

Eleanor Goldstein. Boca Raton, Fla. Social Issues Series Inc. 1990 Art.

81. Portage District Library. 5 Dec. 2007.

-primary source