Born Bad - Should Juvenile Offenders Get Lighter Sentences?

As a nation, we are collectively up in arms with the types of punishments that should be administered to juvenile offenders, especially those offenders who have committed a murder. Debates rage about whether or not the child should actually be held responsible for his or her actions. The younger the defendant, the more difficult the decision becomes. At what age are humans able to tell the consequences of their actions?

Juveniles have long been a part of the penal system. They commit crimes, and they are punished for those crimes. However, some feel that juveniles are not punished harshly enough, while others feel that the parents, and not the child, should be held accountable. What it comes down to is decided whether or not children can actually be criminals, or do they simply sometimes commit crimes without realizing the seriousness of their actions?

The case of Lionel Tate drew a lot of attention when he beat six year old Tiffany Eunick to death. Tate was all of twelve years old at the time of the murder. He was a chubby, rambunctious child, and Tiffany was a playmate. Eunick was over at Tate's house, in the care of Tate's mother. Around ten that night, his mother went to bed while the two children played.

When Tate's mother, Kathleen Grossett-Tate, heard Eunick cry out, she admonished her for being loud. The child finally quieted, and Grossette-Tate never went to check on the little girl. Some time passed, and Lionel Tate told his mother that Eunick had stopped breathing. The little girl was dead.

The circumstances surrounding the death of Tiffany Eunick are complicated. Initially, Tate claimed that the little girl had hit her head on the table, and that is what had killed her. His story changed as evidence was gathered. Finally, his defense came up with the argument that he had simply been imitating wrestling moves that he had seen on television. How can a little, impressionable child be held accountable when he was simply mimicking actors on tv?

Of course, Lionel Tate's behavior prior to Tiffany Eunick's death needs to be taken into account. He was not known to be a good child who only had the one black mark on his record. He had been a trouble maker for the previous eight years, and it would appear those trouble making tendencies eventually led up to Tiffany Eunick's death. Tate showed many signs that he had anger and aggression, from fighting with others at school to acting out. Still, those behaviors were brushed under the rug as the defense blamed professional wrestling to be the cause of the assault.

By the time Tate was fourteen years old, he was found guilty of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. It would seem that the punishment fit the crime. However, the media went crazy. They could not fathom how, in a humane world, a little boy could be sentenced to life. He would never have the chance to get married, have children, or go to work like normal people do. It infuriated and perplexed many people.

In the court of public opinion, the state of Florida had let this young man down. They had deprived him of life and liberty, all due to a mistake he had made when showing off his wrestling moves. His attorneys immediately began appealing his case, and the media ferociously covered the story. The press focused on his age and not on the crime, or on the little girl who had died at his hands.

Eventually, it was found that the state did not give Tate a mental competency hearing before or during his trial. His conviction was thrown out, and the charges were brought against him once again. Realizing that he would most likely be found guilty for a second time, Tate pleaded guilty to second degree murder, and got probation along with a year of house arrest. He got his first taste of the outside in January of 2004. He managed to only serve three years for the murder of a six year old girl. Still, many felt that justice had been served due to his youth. Surely his time in jail had scared him enough for him to be a mature young man who would go on to do great things.

Tate broke his probation for the first time in September of 2004. That was seven months after his release date. He was found outside of a home with a knife. Instead of putting him back in jail, which he would have been well within his rights to do, the judge instead decided to add to his probation. Five years were tacked on to his probation, and Tate was put out on the streets once again.

Tate managed to stay out of trouble until May 23^rd, 2005. This time, though, the crime was far worse than being found with a knife. He had ordered four pizzas, and when the delivery man came to drop them off, Tate stuck a gun in his face. When the pizza delivery man ran, Tate chased him. Luckily, the delivery man was not seriously hurt or killed.

After all of the drama of getting a life sentence and then getting released from jail, Tate found himself in a situation that he was unable to get out of. He would no longer be able to claim that he had made his mistakes due to his youth. Because of his parole violation, he was sentenced to thirty years in prison.

Tate was still unwilling to truly accept responsibility. He claimed that he was hearing voices and had other mental problems that were to blame. However, after psychological evaluations, it was decided that he was actually faking symptoms in order to make himself to appear to have afflictions that he did not really have. For once, Tate was going to have to actually take responsibility for his criminal behavior.

Lionel Tate is a good example of someone who is meant to live a life of crime. Given chance after change, Tate chose criminal behavior. He was a criminal as a child, just as he was a criminal as a man. He was destined to be in prison, if not for the murder, then for the parole violation. Letting him off the hook due to his age did not do law abiding citizens any favors.

Kari Sable Burns, "Killer: Lionel Tate-Victim: Tiffany Eunick," karisable.com

Associated Press, "Convicted Child Killer Lionel Tate Accepts Plea Deal in Probation Pizza Robbery," Foxnews.com