i am curious about this, why did we decided to make the legal age 18? where did we get that from? all thrugh out history we have had children at 14 , 18, 24 and just about any age but why did we decided to cut it off at 18 recently?
not saying the law is wrong just curious about how it came to be.
2006-11-27 15:24:34 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
It is Called the Age Of Consent.
Studies show that the population has Matured at age 18...The Legal age of consent.
2006-11-27 15:27:59 · answer #1 · answered by Mav 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If a boy or girl was 16 years of age and committed a felony, would you want the legal age to be 16 years of age and be held accountable as an adult? This would be one of the laws that would be changed if 16 year olds were not minors. In some cases such as murder, a 16 year old can be tried as an adult. But a jury will take the age of the teenager into account. This has not been recent as I remember congress changing this when the draft was still being done. The logic was if a man/woman was old enough to serve the country at 18, then the legal age was changed to 18 so you would also be able to vote in the elections.
http://www.answers.com/topic/legal-age
2006-11-27 23:34:08 · answer #2 · answered by Sparkles 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
American law is ambivalent and capricious when determining the status of a "minor".
In the matter of parental control, children under the age of 18 are considered "minors" with parents having jurisdiction over them if the "child" is still considered a resident of that home.
Legal status for these same children may place them in the courts as "adults", facing severe adult sentences.
Most state education departments consider a child a minor until 16, and require their attendance in a public or private educational institution.
The U.S. military and the U.S. Congress chose to determine the legal age as 18 to encourage military enlistment and provide a larger voting pool.
Only one state, Mississippi, allows legal marriage under the age of 15 without parental consent. Mississippians must mature earlier than those in the other 49 states!
Under special circumstances, children under 18 can have themselves legally "emancipated", meaning they are afforded the luxury of being an "adult"; however, one must also accept the responsibilities of an adult; i.e., providing the necessities of food and shelter and the luxuries of a car, education, and medical and dental care.
Enjoy your "minority" as long as you can. Being an "adult" has dire consequences.
2006-11-28 00:08:23 · answer #3 · answered by Baby Poots 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
People 18 and older are said to be mature enough in general to be treated as an adult.
I suppose it could also have a small amount to do with the fact that ever since this country was founded, the army would only recruit people of 18 years of age or older (only men recruited at first).
2006-11-27 23:28:52 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
actually 18 is the time the body gets mature and it is the offical legal age for most of the countries in the world, and it begans in far back Rome
2006-11-27 23:26:42 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋