Name _______________________ Date__________ Period ______

Magazine Article Reflection Assignment

Directions: You will need to read the article “Locked Away Forever?” by
Adam Liptak, for the NY Times Upfront magazine and then reflect on it by
answering the following questions AND relating your own personal opinion in
the last paragraph of this essay-style format. Please attach this as a cover
sheet to your essay and then attach the article to the back of your essay.

You should use a laptop and print your document to either the library or
THS 216 (Mr. Mac’s room). This will need to be turned in no later than by
the end of the period on Friday. HOWEVER, be aware that if you are
unable to print, you MUST save it to your Blended Schools account, and
we’ll attempt to print it out ASAP.

ARTICLE: Locked Away Forever? (NY Times Upfront Magazine)

Write a quality essay consisting of the following items (minimum):

Paragraph 1: Summarize the article.

Paragraph 2: Choose ONE of the following and discuss it:
 Do you think stricter sentences for juvenile offenders is
an effective crime deterrent?
 Should parents be held accountable for violent crimes
committed by their minor children? Why or why not?
 How might victim’s families feel if the Supreme Court
did away with life sentences for juvenile offenders?
Paragraph 3: Look at the photo on top of page 15 (Rebecca Falcon).
What might be going through this inmate’s mind as she
looks out at the prison yard? This woman was sentenced to
life in prison for a crime she committed as a teen. Do you
feel sorry for her? Explain.
Paragraph 4: After reading this article, do you feel that sentencing a teen
to life in prison is a violation of the 8th Amendment’s “cruel
and unusual punishment” clause? Why or why not?

*Since you have 2 days to work on this, if it looks like you won’t
have time to finish this assignment by the end of class on
Friday, you will need to take this home and work on it to ensure
that’s turned in by the end of class on Friday.

US Civics & Government: S1 2013