If children are too young to vote, drink alcohol, drive and see R-rated movies, why should they be judged like adults? The question has always been whether or not a teenager under eighteen convicted of violent crimes should be tried as an adult. Children as young as eleven are sent to adult prisons (Krikorian 2003). In such cases, the jury does not take into consideration the fact that they are too young to stand trial, that their brains are not fully developed and that they are capable of rehabilitation. Every state allows children under sixteen to be tried as adults, but new research indicates that many do not understand their situation well enough to be able to defend themselves. A study by the private MacArthur Foundation reveals that many children under the age of sixteen have as much difficulty understanding legal procedures as adults declared incompetent to take legal action. The study, conducted by John D. and the Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice, included more than 1,400 people ages 11 to 24 in Philadelphia , Los Angeles, Northern and Eastern Virginia, and Northern Florida. They were given an intelligence test and asked to respond to several hypothetical legal situations, such as whether they had to confess to a police officer. The results revealed that a third of 11 to 13 year olds and a fifth of 14 to 15 year olds could not understand the proceedings or help lawyers defend them. The study recommends that states reconsider the minimum age for juveniles to be tried as adults or develop a system for evaluating the competency of juvenile defendants (Salant 2003). Teenagers under the age of eighteen are too young to be judged and are not fully aware of it. ..... middle of paper ....... Every human being has made a mistake in his life; some made a bigger one than others and ended up in prison. Therefore, consider that these adolescents are young to stand trial, their brains are not fully developed, and they are capable of rehabilitation. Works Cited “Should Children Be Tried as Adults?” The first online debate website. Np, and Web. February 23, 2014. “The adolescent brain: still under construction.” » NIMH RSS. Np, and Web. March 22, 2014. Krikorian, Greg. “Many children are considered unfit for the adult course.” Sacramento Bee (2003): 1-2. Print.Liptak, Adam. “Those sentenced to life as teenagers are now looking for a second chance.” The New York Times. The New York Times, October 16, 2007. Web. March 22, 2014Salant, Jonathan D. “Young people should not be judged like adults, study finds.” » Young people should not be judged like adults, study finds. Associated Press, March 3, 2003. Web. March 21. 2014.