After two arguments heard in March, the Supreme Court is expected to rule in the next few weeks on when it is appropriate to sentence juvenile offenders to life without parole. When do you think harsh sentencing is appropriate for minors, if ever? Should young inmates be housed with adults? What would you propose as an alternative sentence if a youth has committed a serious, violent crime? In the Room for Debate discussion "When to Punish, and When to Rehabilitate," T. J. Parsell and Jennifer Bishop-Jenkins write: Mr. Parsell: At the time I was sent to prison, for robbing a Fotomat with a toy gun, I was still a boy - physically, cognitively, socially and emotionally - and ill equipped to respond to the sexualized coercion of older, more experienced convicts. On my first day, I was drugged, gang raped and turned into sexual chattel. Youth held in adult prisons are the hardest hit and easiest prey for sexual abuse. Placing juveniles in adult facilities has devastating consequences not only for the youth but also for the communities from which they came. Eighty percent are released before their 21st birthday, and 95 percent are released before they turn 25. They're coming back into society indelibly marked by what they've experienced - either traumatized by sexual assault, or hyper-violent from having learned to fend off the threat. The Centers for Disease Control reports that youth who are transferred to the adult system are approximately 34 percent more likely than youth retained in the juvenile court system to be rearrested for a felony. When research has shown young people kept in the juvenile system are less likely to re-offend, why do we keep making the same mistake? Ms. Bishop-Jenkins: Most young people who commit crimes appropriately stay in the juvenile justice system which is focused on rehabilitation. But there are rare cases when older teens demonstrate heinousness and culpability and carry out truly horrific crimes. For those few a couple years of detention and programs are not enough. These individuals can be appropriately tried as adults. They need to grow older before release. They need long term evaluation to see if they will ever be able to rejoin society. And we should not rule out a sentence of life without parole in extreme cases. We must balance the victims" families" right to some legal finality with the likelihood that the offender will ever qualify for release. It's a sad fact that some sociopaths start young and remain dangerous all their lives. As a volunteer with the Cook County juvenile probation program for more than a decade sharing my sister's story with youthful offenders, I am always emotional when I talk to them about how their getting in trouble is a good thing. It means they get a chance to learn from their mistakes. Consequences are good. They help young people change and grow. They have been given a chance that I'd give anything for my sister's killer to have had before his crimes escalated. It always inspires me how many young people actually get this. Students: Does your state allow juvenile criminals to be imprisoned with adults? Do you think the possibility of life without parole, perhaps among adults, is a suitable deterrent for would-be youthful offenders? Does either penalty offer the criminal a chance at rehabilitation? Should allowances be made for younger criminals, even if they are guilty of the worst crimes? What crimes, if any, should be punished by harsh sentences? Was the Supreme Court right to make it illegal to sentence a minor to death?