'Hell on wheels': Teen convicted of crashing car at 100 mph, killing boyfriend and friend

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'Hell on wheels': Teen convicted of crashing car at 100 mph, killing boyfriend and friend
nbcnews.com

“This was not reckless driving. This was murder,” the judge said before she read out Mackenzie Shirilla's verdict Monday afternoon.

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This is an unbelievable tragedy, for all of them. She just turned 18, I wonder what her sentence will be like. I assume that in the US - unlike the situation over here in Europe - there is no special "juvenile justice" for young adults, so she might face multiple lifetimes in prison after being convicted for murder. If I remember correctly you can get separate sentences for each victim, which will sum up to your total sentence.

In the US, juvenile justice is what trying children as adults is called. As young as 13 you can be tried as an adult in crimes

When adult justice is applied, then there’s nothing “juvenile” in that. I guess the thinking behind that (over here) is that you are not yet a fully developed adult when you are 18 and that you might get another chance in life than when committing crimes at older ages.

I believe the point is that there's a process for deciding whether a juvenile should be charged as a juvenile or as an adult. It means a juvenile who is mature enough to be making cold, calculated decisions (like, "hey, I'm a juvenile, I can get away with more") can still be tried as an adult.