States rethink 'adult time for adult crime' - the Youth Advocacy Division
States rethink 'adult time for adult crime' - the Youth Advocacy Division
States rethink 'adult time for adult crime' - the Youth Advocacy Division
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Brain Maturation and <strong>the</strong> Execution of Juveniles<br />
Some reflections on science and <strong>the</strong> law.<br />
Illustration ©David Hollenbach<br />
issue.<br />
By Ruben C. Gur | By Ruben C. Gur | Should <strong>the</strong> death penalty be applied to<br />
offenders who were “juvenile” but over <strong>the</strong> age of 16 when <strong>the</strong>y committed<br />
<strong>the</strong>ir crimes As I am writing, <strong>the</strong> U.S. Supreme Court is deliberating this<br />
The attorneys arguing against juvenile execution used evidence from research on brain<br />
development to claim that <strong>the</strong> juvenile brain is insufficiently mature in areas relevant to<br />
criminal culpability to warrant <strong>the</strong> ultimate punishment. This is how I was dragged out<br />
of my hiding in <strong>the</strong> laboratory and into <strong>the</strong> midst of legal deliberations, culminating in<br />
amicus briefs and conferences with glitzy legal teams.<br />
The first hint of <strong>the</strong> storm came two years ago, with a call from a lawyer, Marc Bookman<br />
C’78, from <strong>the</strong> Defender Association of Philadelphia. He asked if I knew of or could<br />
prepare a review of <strong>the</strong> literature on brain development; he needed one to help a
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