Adolescent Brain Development - the Youth Advocacy Division

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HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH, THE REST OF THEIR LIVES: LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE FOR YOUTH IN THE UNITED STATES IN 2008 (2008). • Executive Summary of report examining juvenile life without parole in the U.S. Discusses crimes that can lead to LWOP, sentencing practices across the states, racially discriminatory sentencing, violent experiences that youth have had in prison, international standards regarding JLWOP, and recommendations for legislatures. Updated in 2008. A.B.A. RECOMMENDATION 105C, Mitigating Circumstances in Sentencing Youthful Offenders (2008). • ABA Recommendation calling for less punitive sentences for children under 18, recognition of youth as a mitigating factor in sentencing, and parole or early release eligibility for youthful offenders. • “The American Bar Association has a long history of recognizing that youth under 18 who are involved with the justice system should be treated differently than those who are 18 or older. • The ABA’s overall approach to juvenile justice policies has been and continues to be to strongly protect the rights of youthful offenders within all legal processes while insuring public safety. Central to this ABA premise is the understanding that youthful offenders have lesser culpability than adult offenders due to the typical behavioral characteristics inherent in adolescence. It is understood that they can and do commit delinquent and criminal acts that have an impact on public safety, but these actors nonetheless are developmentally different. They are not adults and do not have fully-formed adult characteristics.” (Introduction) Allstate Advertisement, WALL STREET JOURNAL, May 17, 2007. • Insurance ad advocating for graduated driver licensing laws on the basis of adolescent brain development. The ad pictures an image of a brain with a car-shaped hole and reads, “Why do most 16-year-olds drive like they’re missing a part of their brain? BECAUSE THEY ARE.” • “Even bright, mature teenagers sometimes do things that are ‘stupid.’ But when that happens, it’s not really their fault. It’s because their brain hasn’t finished developing. The underdeveloped area is called the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex. It plays a critical role in decision making, problem solving and understanding future consequences of today’s actions. Problem is, it won’t be fully mature until they’re into their 20s.” Less Guilty By Reason of Adolescence, Issue Brief (MacArthur Found. Res. Network on Adolescent Dev. & Juv. Just., 2006. http://www.adjj.org/downloads/6093issue_brief_3.pdf (last visited May 19, 2010) - Explains “immaturity gap” in adolescents who are intellectually mature but more impulsive, short-sighted, and susceptible to peer influence than adults, and argues that juveniles are less culpable than adults because of their immaturity. Advocates for a separate system for juvenile offenders. ABA Online: Adolescence, Brain Development and Legal Culpability, (2004) http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus/Adolescence.pdf (.pdf. format) • Concise overview of the implications of adolescent brain development science on the juvenile justice system National Institute of Mental Health, Teenage Brain: A Work in Progress (2001). http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/teenbrain.cfm • Brief article summarizing some of the teenage brain studies performed by 2001. • “Using functional MRI (fMRI), a team led by Dr. Deborah Yurgelun-Todd at Harvard's McLean Hospital scanned subjects' brain activity while they identified emotions on pictures of faces displayed on a computer screen. Young teens, who characteristically perform poorly on the task,
activated the amygdala, a brain center that mediates fear and other "gut" reactions, more than the frontal lobe. As teens grow older, their brain activity during this task tends to shift to the frontal lobe, leading to more reasoned perceptions and improved performance. Similarly, the researchers saw a shift in activation from the temporal lobe to the frontal lobe during a language skills task, as teens got older.” (2) V. Expert Testimony/Briefs Petitioner Brief, Graham v. Florida (2010) Successful Supreme Court brief arguing against juvenile life without parole for non-homicide offenses committed by juveniles under 18. Cites Roper and adolescent brain research extensively. Petitioner Brief, Sullivan v. Florida (2009) Brief arguing against juvenile life without parole for non-homicide offense committed by 13-year-old. Cites Roper and adolescent brain research extensively. Amici Curiae Brief of the American Psychological Association, et al., Sullivan and Graham (2009) http://www.abanet.org/publiced/preview/briefs/pdfs/07-08/08-7412_PetitionerAmCu4HealthOrgs.pdf The APA and others’ amicus brief in Sullivan and Graham that cites heavily to new brain science Testimony of David Fassler, M.D., New Hampshire State Legislature (2004) http://ccjr.policy.net/relatives/22020.pdf (.pdf format) Testimony given to the State Legislature of New Hampshire in efforts to outlaw the juvenile death penalty in the state (relies heavily on brain development arguments) Declaration of Ruben C. Gur, Ph.D., Patterson v. Texas (2002) http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus/Gur%20affidavit.pdf (.pdf format) Declaration in Patterson v. Texas (juvenile death penalty case) citing heavily upon recent science regarding adolescent brain development VI. Supreme Court Opinions Graham v. Florida – 560 U.S. ____ (2010) Supreme Court case that declared life without parole unconstitutional for juvenile offenders under 18 convicted of nonhomicide crimes. Quotes from Graham v. Florida Potentially useful language from the Graham decision. Roper v. Simmons – 543 U.S. 551 (2005) Supreme Court case that declared the juvenile death penalty unconstitutional and discusses the developmental differences between juveniles under age 18 and adults. Atkins v. Virginia – 536 U.S. 304 (2002) Supreme Court case that declared the death penalty for mentally retarded persons unconstitutional (uses arguments of brain development) Thompson v. Oklahoma – 487 U.S. 815 (1988) Supreme Court case that declared the death penalty illegal for youth under the age of 16.
Page 1 and 2: Adolescent Brain Development A Yout
Page 3 and 4: VII. Legal Motions from MA 1. Motio
Page 5 and 6: Scientific Backing • Myelination
Page 7 and 8: Adolescent Brain Development Annota
Page 9 and 10: III. Academic Articles Elizabeth Ca
Page 11: Margo Gardner & Laurence Steinberg,
Page 15 and 16: Most of the materials for Sullivan
Page 17 and 18: GOLDBERG, ELKHONON Ph.D. Clinical P
Page 19 and 20: Limbic System Adolescent Brain Deve
Page 21 and 22: Adolescent Brain Development Implic

Adolescent Brain Development - the Youth Advocacy Division

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