Jacob Ind Case Summary

17-year old Marquese has been in and out of the juvenile system for years. He has seven juvenile felony convictions and was recently charged with auto theft and residential burglary. Prosecutors consider him a repeat law breaker and a future “career criminal”. However, his defense attorney believes he can be helped; his jailed, drug-addicted mother had been the one who taught him to steal and he had been raised with no real guidance so he breaks the law to return to the most stable system he has: juvenile hall. He has been given a last chance at juvenile court. Juveniles were not always judged so leniently. Supreme Court cases over the years have given juveniles more rights and protections as younger people with different conditions as adults. In Kent v. United …show more content…
He saw no way out of his situation except to kill his abuser and his mother, who had done nothing to protect him. He was sentenced to life without parole. Jacob Ind was sentenced without regard for his abused mental state at the time of the murder. The attorney interviewed in the video mentioned that for abusers, child abuse was the “perfect crime” because the abused child rarely fought back or reported them, because they still depended on the abusers as caregivers. As such, Jacob Ind felt trapped in his situation and acted in the only way he could think of as an adolescent. His situation and mental state should have had some effect on the sentencing he was to be given. Another reason why juveniles should only be tried as adults in certain circumstances is society has taken to judging adolescents who are vaguely involved with crime harshly. For example, in the video “When Kids Get Life”, Erik Jensen was sentenced to life without parole, though he did nothing but witness the murder and help get rid of the evidence. He was given the same sentence as the murderer Nathan Ybenez himself without ever having a hand in the murders themselves. The video also mentioned that 25% of juveniles sentenced to life