Armed robbery age limit?

A gun is a gun, whether it is held by a 35 year old man or a 12 year old boy. If it goes off, you're just as dead. The boy should be tried for armed robbery.

perhaps the age limit should be eightyfive;
that might eliminate as lot of the real 'nasties' and most of the older felons might just fall asleep, 'in the act' so to speak.

Actually Eva I agree with you completely, I didn't explain myself at all well there, I was trying to make a joke about the fact that that this kid was so young that he was demanding sweets and cigarettes, but you are right, IF the gun had been loaded the shop owner would have been just as dead had the kid pulled the trigger.

When I was a kid 45 years ago we used to "egg" peoples front doors, how the hell have we got in this situation where small children think nothing of carrying guns?

I would like to know how the hell we've gotten in the situation where small children have such easy access to guns.

BTW, my father was a WWII vet and collected guns, but they were always locked up in a gun cabinet, and we had no earthly idea where he kept the key. (And we never even considered looking for it...he would have tanned our hides.)

Well, since children here (in Germany, like in most other European countries, can't be judged at all wehen under 14 [Germany]), and since I strongly support this, I've a different opinion.

However, I would agree, if children got totally the same rights as adults do - that would be a fiar agreement.
(Quite interesting that children -especially in countries, who don't sign the Convention on the Rights of the Child punish children like adults. Ooops that's the reason )