Juvenile Justice Information Exchange (https://jjie.org/tag/mexico/)
Immigration is an explosive topic in this nation. It has deep implications for the economy and the social and cultural landscape of the country. It has and will continue to have a huge impact on politics, especially for the presidential election. We know all that, of course. Anyone who follows the news the least bit, knows that.
The 14-year old boy accused of working as a hit man for a Mexican drug cartel has become the poster child for a generation of kids recruited by gangs around the world. Edgar Jimenez Lugo, also known as “El Ponchis,” has allegedly confessed to participating in four murders involving torture and decapitation. He told investigators that he was drugged and his life was threatened while he worked for the South Pacific Cartel, a criminal organization linked to 200 murders. Time Magazine examines the worldwide impact of this story which has made headlines from Atlanta to Australia. The teenager is actually an American citizen, born in San Diego, arrested in Cuernavaca. In the U.S. he might be tried as an adult, but under Mexican law he’s a juvenile and will likely get just three years in prison if convicted. People who work with children are disgusted by the case but not surprised. Sister Margaret Slowick, a member of the Sisters of St.