15 yr old admits killing 9 yr old "To see how it felt'

[birddog1]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575590,00.html?test=latestnews

Specifically I would like to focus on this statement by her defense attorney .

"We are throwing away the child and we are signing a death sentence for Alyssa," Valentine said. "She is not going to survive her time in the Cole County jail."

Given what she did, the manner she did it, and that she really isn't a child I see no reason why our justice system should coddle her. She deserves to be tried and punished as an adult in my opinion and I can not see any logical reason why she should not be. Matter of fact I would have no problem with people her age receiving a death sentence in similar circumstances.

Why shouldn't she be thrown away? She is clearly disturbed and will likely not ever be a productive member of society and in my opinion given her history will likely always be a danger to someone.

[Theranna]

Some people cannot be saved and while I accept the sadness of throwing away such a girl, some crimes are unforgiveable.

[Joeybear23]

What's the next thing she'll do just to know what it feels like?

Once a person has demonstrated the willingness to commit such a horrendous crime, it is the responsibility of the justice system to guarantee that person can never do it again. There really can be no tolerance for murder. None.

[birddog1]

What's the next thing she'll do just to know what it feels like?

Once a person has demonstrated the willingness to commit such a horrendous crime, it is the responsibility of the justice system to guarantee that person can never do it again. There really can be no tolerance for murder. None.

I could even see some possible leniency for a person of that age that killed someone say during a robbery or something on the spur of the moment, although I might not agree with it. To me though this is a whole other class of murder and personally I think she should get the needle for it. So coldly schemed to murder this child for no other reason than she wanted to see what it was like to kill someone.

[brody]

This is even worse than the ones who set the kid of fire essentially for reporting them for stealing his bike.

Well, not really - I guess all you can really say about things such as this is that they are completely senseless.

A relativistic comparison is really unmeasurable EDIT: and unfathomable.

[WhiteHatBobby]

The scare is that this 15-year old could get off scot-free if the Supreme Court, in its rush to move the legislative capital of this nation to Bruxelles, Belgique, decides any harsh penalty on this juvenile will be "unconstitutional" under the UN Rights of the Child and other countries' laws. Kennedy, Ginsberg, Breyer, and the now-retired O'Connor were the charges that gave us the idea foreign law trumps United States law, and effectively moves the legislative capital to Belgium.

[brody]

This is not about politics - you should really take it somewhere else.

[ChaosControl]

A murderer is no longer human, of course the psychopath deserves to be tried in the same manner as any adult.

[CaffeineHat]

There are not words to describe the sadness this story causes in me. There are not words to describe the senselessness. There is no light in the hideous darkness from which this occurred. There is little consolation for the bereaved.

And so...

May he who grants peace, give peace to the family of the victim, and may the name of the murderer never be spoken again. May she know no peace, ever. May her sadness be as eternal as the sadness she has caused, and her life as empty and black as her soul, forever. Finally, may justice for her be swift and never-ending. There is only one true judge.

[Samm]

This girl is a pure psychopath... One can only imagine how a 15 year old could ever become a cold blooded killer, but it does not matter how she got that way; she is irredeemable. The next experience she should have so she can find out how it feels is to have 50,000 volts run through her body.

[traditional_woman]

This story is so bizarre, and the fact that it was a TEEN GIRL who killed her is bizarre and out of the ordinary as well. She wanted to see what it felt like, now she can see what it feels like to have justice served!

[Yunari]

Terrible :(

[freedom fighter]

This is not about politics - you should really take it somewhere else.

Hate to break the news to you but you are on the wrong thread.... This is the general topic thread, not politics.

[freedom fighter]

It sickens me to think of her poor little innocent victim. A 15 year knows exactly what she/ he is doing and knows right from wrong. This is a tragedy and she deserves to be tried as an adult.

[James Juno]

This girl is a pure psychopath... One can only imagine how a 15 year old could ever become a cold blooded killer, but it does not matter how she got that way; she is irredeemable. The next experience she should have so she can find out how it feels is to have 50,000 volts run through her body.

This.

[smyrna]

This girl is just 15 years old and has done such a heinous crime.....



her father and mother are a major part of this and should also be prosecuted.

[James Juno]

This girl is just 15 years old and has done such a heinous crime.....



her father and mother are a major part of this and should also be prosecuted.

I'm not sure. Is psychopathy learned?

I've seen identically raised twins grow up to be social opposites.

[smyrna]

I'm not sure. Is psychopathy learned?

I've seen identically raised twins grow up to be social opposites.


I could be totally wrong...no doubt...but the probability is on my side that I can show you two parents who didn't do their job...especially...dad.

[James Juno]

I could be totally wrong...no doubt...but the probability is on my side that I can show you two parents who didn't do their job...especially...dad.

The parents might have been neglectful but where the line of culpability should be drawn is speculation. I wouldn't go after them unless a clear connection can be drawn to this girl's murderous behavior. I agree it should be, and no doubt will be, checked out.

[Dem]

I'm not sure. Is psychopathy learned?

I've seen identically raised twins grow up to be social opposites.
According to Wikipedia, the current consensus is that psychopathy is a neurological disorder present from birth.

[McGhee]

This is just sickening! I'm sorry but this 15 year old girl is beyond the point of return, in my opinion. She has no human compassion or feelings for anything, that's obvious. And to kill someone just to see what it felt like is downright evil and sick. She needs to see "what it feels like" to spend the rest of her life in prison.

[JediMindTrick]

According to Wikipedia, the current consensus is that psychopathy is a neurological disorder present from birth.

I think its a bit of both. Some people are just born defective but in others the way they are brought up that drives them to be bad. Sadly I see kids all the time at my job that I know will turn out bad when they grow up. When I hired on as a cop in 1996 I can vividly recall one of my first cases involved an eight year old kid named Fred. His parents completely sucked and my training officer told me at that time that Fred had no chance and would end up being one of our career problem people. Fast forward 13 years and 21 yr old Fred is currently in prison for drug related crimes. I dealt with him many times in the interim and it was sad to see how his life was going. Parents that were too drunk to raise him so he raised himself, getting affiliated with gangs because they were the only people on a consistent basis who actually showed any kind of care for him, and constant arrests for typical juvenile stuff. I can remember him at age eight and seeing that there was just an innocent kid there who wasn't beyond hope but life never gave him much of a chance. Little kids are so dependent on parents to make the right choices for them and when those parents don't its no wonder so man turn out damaged.

[sgdp]

Really a shame. This isn't ending well for any of the parties involved.

But, I must say, I'm glad this approach is being taken. Maybe it's better to harsh than not harsh enough.

In my area, some kids set a 9-year-old boy on fire. The victim has 3rd degree burns over most of his body. This all took place in a not-so-nice area, and the parents are having a really hard time affording the medical bills.

The kicker is the police refuse to file charges. They say it "was a prank gone wrong." The kids (I think they were also 15/16) who lit a human being on fire should be charged and prosecuted to the FULLEST extent of the law, just like this girl will be.

[Samm]

I could be totally wrong...no doubt...but the probability is on my side that I can show you two parents who didn't do their job...especially...dad.

How come some people simply have to rationalize bad behavior by holding somebody else to blame? :rolleyes:

[Ardathair]

"We are throwing away the child and we are signing a death sentence for Alyssa," Valentine said. "She is not going to survive her time in the Cole County jail."

The child being thrown out by the defense is the nine year old who received a death sentence from Alyssa.

[birddog1]

This girl is just 15 years old and has done such a heinous crime.....



her father and mother are a major part of this and should also be prosecuted.

From what I have read I have inferred that her parents are unfit deadbeats and she stayed with her grandmother.

[smyrna]

How come some people simply have to rationalize bad behavior by holding somebody else to blame? :rolleyes:

There is a question of whether or not a 15 year old should be prosecuted as an adult or a juvenile? If she is treated as a juvenile, then she is not being held totally accountable because of her age. This same logic would indicate that if she is not totally responsible, then where would the balance of the responsibility lie? IMHO it is with the parents and they should be prosecuted right along side their child. I do not look for blame, I look for responsibility and accountability...which is a concept that is eluding our society.

[notluzn]

I would throw that girl off the Grand Canyon

[brody]

Really a shame. This isn't ending well for any of the parties involved.

But, I must say, I'm glad this approach is being taken. Maybe it's better to harsh than not harsh enough.

In my area, some kids set a 9-year-old boy on fire. The victim has 3rd degree burns over most of his body. This all took place in a not-so-nice area, and the parents are having a really hard time affording the medical bills.

The kicker is the police refuse to file charges. They say it "was a prank gone wrong." The kids (I think they were also 15/16) who lit a human being on fire should be charged and prosecuted to the FULLEST extent of the law, just like this girl will be.

The major issue here is that "the parents are having a really hard time affording the medical bills".

Destroy the civil society and overthrow the rule of law.

[angelicmadrigal]

One can only imagine how a 15 year old could ever become a cold blooded killer, but it does not matter how she got that way; she is irredeemable.

Maybe in regards to her culpability it doesn't matter, however, it IS worth examining from a preventitve standpoint.

[JimGP20]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,575590,00.html?test=latestnews

Specifically I would like to focus on this statement by her defense attorney .

"We are throwing away the child and we are signing a death sentence for Alyssa," Valentine said. "She is not going to survive her time in the Cole County jail."

Given what she did, the manner she did it, and that she really isn't a child I see no reason why our justice system should coddle her. She deserves to be tried and punished as an adult in my opinion and I can not see any logical reason why she should not be. Matter of fact I would have no problem with people her age receiving a death sentence in similar circumstances.

Why shouldn't she be thrown away? She is clearly disturbed and will likely not ever be a productive member of society and in my opinion given her history will likely always be a danger to someone.

Your thread title brought to mind another case. Gary Ridgeway, more commonly known as The Green River Killer, stabbed a 6 year old boy when he was 16, then walked away laughing and saying "I always wondered what it would feel like to kill someone." Fortunately, the young boy survived the attack. Ridgeway grew up to be a notorious serial killer. He confessed to 71 murders, but is believed to be responsible for more than 90.

[Samm]

I would throw that girl off the Grand Canyon

Now that would be an experience!

[Samm]

Maybe in regards to her culpability it doesn't matter, however, it IS worth examining from a preventitve standpoint.

I agree in principle, but even if they determine precisely why this girl became a psychopath, what are they going to do with the information?

[EnchantedFrog]

Your thread title brought to mind another case. Gary Ridgeway, more commonly known as The Green River Killer, stabbed a 6 year old boy when he was 16, then walked away laughing and saying "I always wondered what it would feel like to kill someone." Fortunately, the young boy survived the attack. Ridgeway grew up to be a notorious serial killer. He confessed to 71 murders, but is believed to be responsible for more than 90.
The similarity is frightening.

[angelicmadrigal]

I agree in principle, but even if they determine precisely why this girl became a psychopath, what are they going to do with the information?

Honestly, it would depend on what the findings were.

[sgdp]

The major issue here is that "the parents are having a really hard time affording the medical bills".

Destroy the civil society and overthrow the rule of law.

What do you mean? Are you agreeing or disagreeing? =\