"FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (AP) -- Lionel Tate became the youngest person sentenced to life in prison in modern U.S. history when he was convicted at the age of 13 of murdering a young girl, but he got out on probation after his first conviction was thrown out."

Article continued.

Ah, where to start with this case?

Article: To many juvenile justice experts, Tate, now 18, is a symbol of the difficulty that the justice system has dealing with children who commit serious crimes. Rather than seeking to rehabilitate them, Florida and dozens of other states have laws permitting them to be tried and punished as adults.

The Fire: Had the individual been "punished as adults" are punished he would have met the death penalty, especially in Florida. So no, Lionel Tate was not "tried and punished" as an adult. He was instead punished in some half-way manner, to please both those who are too weak to give out the death penalty and those who wanted to see justice, no matter what the age of the defendent.

The crime in this entire incident is that he was allowed to leave prison in the first place.