TOO YOUNG TO DRINK! TOO YOUNG TO VOTE!
TOO YOUNG TO EXECUTE!
Coalition Partners
‘American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky
Amnesty International
Catholic Conference of Kentucky
Central Kentucky Council for Peace and Justice
Children’s Alliance
Christ the Healer Church, Edmonton
Church Women United (Louisville Area)
Commonwealth of Kentucky Dept. of Juvenile Justice
Commonwealth of Kentucky Dept. of Public Advocacy
Dominican Sisters, Cong. of St. Catharine of Siena
Fairness Campaign
Fellowship of Reconciliation
Glenmary Sisters
Greater Community Council
Greater Louisville AME Ministerial Fellowship
Interdenominational Ministerial Coalition
Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish
Federation of Louisville
Justice and Peace Office, Diocese of Covington
Justice Resource Center
Kentucky Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression
Kentucky Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Kentucky Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
Kentucky Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants
Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
Kentucky Council of Churches
Kentucky Disciples Peace Fellowship
Kentucky Domestic Violence Association
Kentucky Faimess Alliance
Kentucky Murder Victims Families for Reconciliation
Kentucky Native American Support Group
Kentucky Psychological Association
Kentucky Psychiatric Association
Kentucky Rainbow Coalition
Kentucky Youth Advocates
Mental Health Association of Kentucky
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
National Mercy Justice Coalition (Sisters of Mercy)
National Organization for Women [NOW]
No More Violence Campaign
Office of Social Concems, Diocese of Owensboro
Peace and Justice Commission, Archdiocese of Louisville
Presbyterian Child Welfare Agency
St. Luke Catholic Church, Salyersville
Quaker Committee on Kentucky Legislation
Sisters of Charity of Nazareth
Sisters of Loretto
Union of American Hebrew Congregations
Ursuline Sisters of Louisville
Ursuline Sisters of Maple Mount Kentucky
Women and Men Religious Against the Death Penalty
Kentuckians can now put to death children
who commit a capital crime at the age of 16
or 17, even though it is well established by
child psychologists that children of that age
are still developing their emotional and cog-
nitive abilities, and lack adult judgment.
This practice must end.
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A majority of states (30) do not execute
juveniles.
In the last 3 years, only the U.S., Democ-
ratic Republic of Congo, Iran, and Paki-
stan executed juvenile offenders. Now
Pakistan has abolished the death pen-
alty; and Iran and Congo no longer exe-
cute juvenile offenders. Only the U.S.
executes juvenile offenders.
79.5% of Kentuckians, polled by the Uni-
versity of Kentucky, prefer a punishment
OTHER THAN EXECUTION for juvenile
offenders.
Kentuckians can already protect society
and punish juvenile offenders severely
without resorting to killing them.
Governor Paul Patton, the Kentucky De-
partment of Juvenile Justice, and many
Democrats and Republicans in both the
House and the Senate, are supporting
this important bill.
HB 180
SB 5
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JUVENILES ARE NOT YET ADULTS
DEVELOPMENTALLY
In many every day matters, the law
recognizes that juveniles are not as mature
as adults. We do not allow juveniles under
18 to smoke or vote. We make them wait
until they are 21 to drink alcohol.
In fact, psychiatrists and psychologists
agree that juveniles are not yet adults de-
velopmentally. Juveniles are still developing
emotional and cognitive abilities.
?The conventional wisdom that the
brain finishes development at puberty
has been disproved.
?MRI technology has shown that the
brain is still undergoing dramatic
growth. Importantly, the areas of the
brain that calm emotions, control im-
pulses, make decisions, and process
abstract ideas are not fully matured
until into the 20s.
?Juveniles’ personalities are not yet fully
formed. The diagnostic handbook of
psychiatrists, the DSM-IV, recommends
against diagnosing “personality disor-
ders,” including sociopathic personality,
for persons under 18.
?Gender differences in maturity of judg-
ment and anti-social choices have been
shown. Females under 21 reached a
level of judgment that males only
reached in the 25-year-old group.
Because a child’s brain is not fully devel-
oped, the American Society for Adolescent
Psychiatry, the American Academy of Child
and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American
Psychiatric Association, and the American
Psychological Association all have positions
against the death penalty for juveniles.
JURIES CAN IMPRISON JUVENILES
FOR LIFE WITHOUT THE DEATH
SENTENCE
Understandably, when a heinous crime
is committed prosecutors, juries, and the
community want to be sure that convicted
criminals cannot repeat the crime.
Without the death penalty, Kentucky
law provides these sentences for juveniles:
?A capital offense is a Class A offense
and carries a sentence up to 50 years.
Under the 85% parole eligibility law
adopted by the 1998 General Assem-
bly, parole is not a possibility for 42/2
years.
2A life sentence without possibility of
parole for 25 years means at least 25
years in prison. Usually it means longer
because the Parole Board seldom pa-
roles persons the first time they are eli-
gible.
?A life sentence means a prisoner is eli-
gible for parole after 20 years. Again, it
is unlikely the Parole Board would
grant parole after that length of time.
Without parole, a prisoner may remain
in prison the rest of his or her life.
The Kentucky criminal justice system
has good procedures in place to insure
against the inappropriate release of dan-
gerous prisoners. Since juveniles are still
maturing and after years of rehabilitation
and treatment in prison may no longer
pose a threat to the community, parole
should remain a possibility.
SUPPORT HB 180 AND SB 15
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