Girls accused in Slender Man stabbing will remain in adult court, judge rules

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Girls accused in Slender Man stabbing will remain in adult court, judge rules

Wisconsin ruling means 13-year-olds could face 65 years in prison after their
lawyers tried to transfer their cases to juvenile courts – but appeal is possible

Monday 10 August 2015 20.58 BST

A Wisconsin judge ruled Monday that two girls accused of stabbing a classmate to please the online horror character Slender Man will stay in adult court, where they could face decades in prison.

The 13-year-old girls’ attorneys had sought to transfer their cases to the juvenile court system, where they could be held for only five years. Psychologists called by defense lawyers testified that they would get more suitable mental health treatment in a juvenile institution.

But Waukesha County circuit judge Michael Bohren, after hearing testimony during four days of hearings in May and June, decided that the girls should remain in adult court.

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Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/aug/10/slender-man-stabbing-girls-adult-court

[HassleCat]

1. Makes no sense

Sure, they committed a serious crime, what we see as an "adult" crime. But their reason for doing it was so immature, I question if their emotional development is much beyond ten years old.

[SoCalMusicLover]

2. Emotional Development

Most people who have the emotional development of a 10 year old, don't plan for 6 months how they are going to trick and then kill one of their friends.

At least one, or both of those girls are Evil, and would probably have grown up to do something Evil, even if they had not done this.

I am glad the victim has not let this ruin her life, or affect how she views others. She is the one I feel sorry for.

[H2O Man]

3. True.

Equally important, the development of the brain's ability to predict the consequences of their behaviors is definitely, without question, incomplete at their age. And those cognitive abilities are as important as emotional stability, when "adult society" responds to teenagers' behaviors ....as parents, school teachers, and members of the legal system.

[PeaceNikki]

4. My community will not benefit in any way by putting these disturbed kids through the adult system.

They need help, not adult prison.

[SoCalMusicLover]

7. They Will Not Get Adult Prison Before 18

Just because they are in Adult courts, they will still serve any sentence in Juvenile system until they're 18.

And as for needing help, the judge has already ruled that they may not use an insanity defense.

They are probably going to get a lesser sentence, as the victim, despite their intentions, survived. Being disturbed enough to do something so heinous to someone supposedly a friend, does not justify a light juvenile sentence, meaning they would be released in less than 4 years. They deserve to be locked up beyond that age, which would not happen if they are tried as juveniles, nor will they get "help," since they have already been deemed mentally stable.

[PeaceNikki]

9. I'm familiar with the details This is literally my community.

Truthfully, they belong in the type of mental health facility that existed before Ronald Reagan for his grimy mitts on this country and destroyed any hope for mental health.

[davidn3600]

6. I think this is beyond simple emotional development

At least one of the girls flat out told the psychologist that she thinks Slender Man is real and would do the crime again to please him. She also believes Harry Potter is real.

They can't release them. They are displaying psychotic behavior. They need serious mental help. And at this point, they would be a danger to release.

[PeaceNikki]

8. Trying them in the juvenile system wouldn't set then free.

Truthfully, they belong in the type of mental health facility that existed before Ronald Reagan for his grimy mitts on this country and destroyed any hope for mental health.

[dsc]

11. it would in 8 years

or at most 12.

[PeaceNikki]

12. And they could be out of the adult system by then as well.

Like a said elsewhere in this thread, they are in need of facilities that no longer exist thanks to Reagan.

It's a terrible story all around. It just is.

[Go Vols]

5. Kids are only considered adults

when they do something bad.

Never seen the national spelling bee champ get told,wow,you are quite smart so we deem you an adult with all the privileges of one.

[SoCalMusicLover]

10. They Are Treated As Adults So Punishment Will Fit Crime

As juveniles, I'm pretty sure they would be eligible for release in under 4 years. Kind of a scary thought.

I guess by the theory of some here, a 12 year old killer deserves more leniency punishment wise than someone 18. When it comes to intentional 1st degree attempted murder, I do not think that should be the case.

[DirkGently]

14. It's not a question of leniency.

That's not why we have juvenile courts. It's not to just be "nicer" to underaged criminals. It's based on the biological fact that children do not have the same capacities as adults. It's the same rationale we apply to determine that children under a certain age can't "consent" to sexual contact. They're not done developing yet, and have both a lesser ability to comprehend the consequences of their actions, and less ability to appreciate the supposed impact of "punishment," so we reason that they need to be treated differently.

A 12-yr-old, like it or not, is simply not the same as an 18 yr-old. Treating them the same because we're "mad" at them doesn't make a lot of sense.

[PeaceNikki]

17. This ^

[Go Vols]

16. I think there should be a set age.

It used to be 18, years ago.

If a 13 year old is capable of a calculated adult crime and will face adult penalty,I would think there would be 13 year olds capable of sane adult reasoning and therefore be granted adult rights and be allowed to drive,vote,ect.

[gratuitous]

13. I didn't hear all the testimony

But it seems that we're talking about 12-year-olds who think an online horror character is real, and committed a very bad crime based on that belief. While I'm all for negative consequences for their actions, I think society is better served by treatment rather than punishment, but that's not a very popular idea in a country where the national religion is the High Church of Redemptive Violence.

[nomorenomore08]

15. I tend not to favor charging juveniles as adults, with the exception of murder and rape cases.

For a 13-year-old (or even younger) I would seriously question adult charges regardless of the offense - think of those 10-year-old kids in the U.K. who beat and stomped a 2-year-old to death, for an extreme example. There's no way a kid that age has an adult-like capacity to understand and consider long-term consequences.

For me personally, this case is a hard one. Clearly they deserve more than a few years in juvie, but I also hesitate (at the least) to put someone so young away for life, or even into old age. More so considering their obviously severe mental health issues.