The case of Roper verses Simmons was a crucial one in the United States of America especially regarding the interpretation of the 8th and 14th Amendments of the constitution. These two amendments prohibit a death penalty for offenders deemed to be below the age of 18 while committing a capital crime. The Supreme Court’s decision on this case elicited various reactions whereby many support it while a few are against it. However, as the majority in the country believes, capital punishment for the minors is a disproportionate penalty and lacks the backing of the constitution (Roper V. Simmons (c)). A civilized society is characterized by evolving standards of decency that cannot allow execution of juvenile offenders (Roper V. Simmons (b)). As the Supreme Court of the U.S. held, it is a cruel and unusual punishment for children below the age of 18 years.
Age is an important factor in criminal cases whether capital or not because child offenders cannot be equated to adult ones. Children are immature and cannot understand the meaning of being responsible. They are also vulnerable to negative influence and peer-pressure that can make them commit crimes. In addition, there character is not fully formed as compared to that of an adult (Roper V. Simmons (a)). This implies that the issue of the age cannot be neglected while designing punishment for juveniles. Therefore, capital punishment would be cruel and unfair to people below the age of 18.
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"Capital Crimes and Minors".
From this perspective, it cannot go without noting that the state court offered an unconstitutional and inappropriate verdict regarding Roper verses Simmons case. At the age of 17, Chris Simmons was a minor, and therefore, lacked the maturity level required for the capital punishment. He may have been influenced by his peers to commit the crime. Under such influence coupled with lack of maturity, children of his age can do anything because they do not have the ability to think straight. Therefore, Simmons ought to have been given a lesser penalty initially before the Supreme Court verdict.
- Roper V. Simmons (a). Case Briefs, n.d. https://www.casebriefs.com/blog/law/criminal-procedure/criminal-procedure-keyed-to-weinreb/sentence/roper-v-simmons-2/2/. Accessed 3rd March 2018.
- Roper V. Simmons (b). Legal Dictionary, n.d. https://legaldictionary.net/roper-v-simmons/. Accessed 3rd March 2018.
- Roper V. Simmons (c). Oyez, n.d. https://www.oyez.org/cases/2004/03-633. Accessed 3rd March 2018.
