
Paul’s Law: Revised Sentences for Juvenile Offenders
- January 9
- CLLB Law
- Criminal Defense
Can people change? If an adult commits murder, that person is tried in court and if found guilty, will go to prison. What if a child commits murder? Has true justice been served if that child is found guilty in an adult court and sentenced to twice as much prison time as he or she has even been alive? Or are a person's developmental years dynamic enough to suggest a child felon can go on to lead a productive, happy life? Paul's Law, which passed in 2013, addresses that very issue. Paul Gingerich was 12 years old when he was an accomplice in the murder of his friend's stepfather 45 miles outside of Fort Wayne, Indiana. The plan was to skip town after the fatal shooting, but the kids didn't m ...