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The main question in the two cases Graham v. Florida and Sullivan v. Florida was juvenile sentencing. These two cases admitted to be reviewed entailed juvenile criminals, one of 13 and the other 17 years of age (APA, 2012). The offenders claimed their life prison sentences minus the opportunity for parole for rape as well as robbery. They regarded this as largely a cruel and an unusual punishment. Foremost, there is immaturity, herein; there is an argument that the juveniles had an immature sense of obligation which could lead to ill-considered actions as well as decisions. Secondly, there was vulnerability; this followed the premise that the juveniles were more disposed to negative manipulations as well as peer pressure (Pinizzotto, 2003). Thirdly, there was the aspect of changeability and the argument predisposed that the characters of these juveniles was inadequately formed relative to that of any adult thereby providing the juveniles with a higher prospective for rehabilitation.
The application of psychology here reveals that a death sentence within prison remain inconsistent with values of proportionality during criminal punishment (APA, 2012). Because of the logical application of psychological analysis in this case, the Supreme Court declared that persons under 18 upon commission of any crime apart from homicide, remain unpunished with life prison minus parole. Because of the advancements in psychological science, the court observed that the juveniles remain less culpable relative to adults owing to their immaturity, susceptibility to external manipulations as well as unformed habits (Pinizzotto, 2003). Consequently, there arose a court observation that justifications for declaring life sentences to the juveniles are weaker owing to the young persons better prospects for rehabilitation as well as incompetency to predict consequences. It is notable that the above enlisted discoveries from this case have formed a basic spring board towards realization of the efficiency of forensic psychology in determining the outcomes of critical criminal cases within courts globally.
References
APA, (2012). Graham v. Florida and Sullivan v. Florida. Web.
Pinizzotto, A. (2003). Forensic Psychologist. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Web.
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