HEAVIER SENTENCES WON'T STOP CRIME, DRUG ABUSE

I am responding to an article that I read entitled, Law And Order
Still Goal in the Feb. 10 Windsor Star. The article addresses crime
bills and jail time for youth involved in drug-related crimes.

The government believes that by imposing these bills on today's youth,
crime and drug use among them will drastically decline. I think this
is a great idea in theory, but will not hold up in the long run.

It will scare the teens at first, and it will decrease, but I believe
that drug use among teens will never completely go away. The article
also mentioned the government wanting to try teens above the age of 13
who commit serious crimes in adult court. I think that the age of 14
is way too young to be tried as an adult. Most children have not even
reached puberty at this young age.

I believe that being tried as an adult at my age of 18 would be very
traumatic but more appropriate, because an individual should know
right from wrong by that age. The government's ideas of dealing with
these situations are good in theory, but should be looked at in a more
practical way before put into play.

Nina V. Fazio,

Belle River