Poll: Should Sayreville Seven be charged as adults?

Should the Sayreville 7 involved in the locker-room sexual abuse case be charged as adults?

That was the question lingering on everyone’s minds in the wake of the scandal that had prematurely ended the War Memorial HS’s football season.

Apparently the question is close to being answered - this according to a legal source close to the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s office.

According to this from the NY Daily News, the source is quoted as saying:

"It's huge news for the kids who were arrested," said the source, who has followed the case. "The charges are still serious, but trust me, juvenile court is where they want to be, not adult court."

Three of the seven face charges as serious as aggravated sexual assault -which could lead to possibly being sentenced to 20 years in prison, this according to one Middlesex County lawyer involved in under-age sex cases.

A spokesperson for the Middlesex County Prosecutor declined to comment on the report.

In juvenile court cases, the judge has greater latitude in the type of sanctions he or she could impose – along with the fact that there’s more of a chance of rehabilitation in a juvenile facility than there would be in an adult facility.

Again, this would be all at the discretion of the prosecutor, who has 30 days from the time of arrest to decide whether or not to have the case tried in adult court.

Does this serve the interests of justice to have all 7 tried in adult court? Quick answer - NO! The reason being is that anything could go wrong in an adult court in front of a jury where the victims would have to testify against the accused - only to be subject to cross-examination by defense attorney.

Would you want your child put in that position?

You have to figure that the parents of the victims were brought in to the decision making process to assess their options, and reasoned that going before a Family Court judge was their best option in seeing that some punishment would be handed down.