The American Psychological Association's (APA's) stance on the psychological maturity of adolescents has been criticized as inconsistent. In its Supreme Court amicus brief in "Roper v. Simmons" (2005), which abolished the juvenile death penalty, APA described adolescents as developmentally immature. In its amicus brief in "Hodgson v. Minnesota"…

The authors use a developmental perspective to examine questions about the criminal culpability of juveniles and the juvenile death penalty. Under principles of criminal law, culpability is mitigated when the actor's decision-making capacity is diminished, when the criminal act was coerced, or when the act was out of character. The authors argue…