In many countries, the rate of offences committed by teenagers is growing significantly. While some individuals believe that the offenders should be punished in the same way as adults, I only partially agree with this view. Although punishing teenagers for the major crimes can increase public safety, it is also important to consider their age and perspective.
On the one hand, it is necessary to give strong punishments when teenagers commit serious crimes such as murder, physical assault, and armed robbery. If governments apply only juvenile laws simply because they are young, this might lead to worldwide controversy. For instance, a well-known case of Shinichiro Azuma triggered a huge wave of complaints and protests when the authorities applied only the juvenile law for the offender rather than stricter measures. Therefore, to provide sustainable safety, highly dangerous offenders should be properly punished, regardless of their age.
On the other hand, I believe that teenagers should not always be punished just like adults, because their minds and psychology is not yet fully developed. To illustrate, research suggests that young people are likely to act impulsively and often do not know the long-term consequences of their actions. Immediately giving them death penalty or sending them to adult prisons might not give the offenders a chance for rehabilitation. Instead, directing them to juvenile centres for minor offences to counselling lessons is a more effective way of giving them a chance to think about their actions.
In conclusion, I believe that sometimes the youth should get the similar punishment as adults, especially in extremely serious cases. However, for the minor offences, it is important to take their immature behavior and undeveloped psychology into account.