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February 15, 2006
Life without parole for juvenile may be cruel, but it is not unusual
With thanks to Howard Bashman for the link, today's must-read for those interested in topics beyond the Sixth Amendment is this fascinating article from the Philadelphia Daily News entitled "No future: Pa. leads nation in juveniles serving life sentences." The article is full of data and insights about life sentences for juvenile offenses, and here are a few notable passages:
With an exploding number of kids becoming killers, more than 2,225 juveniles across the country now are serving life in prison without parole.... Because of tough state laws such as charging murder suspects as adults regardless of their age, Pennsylvania tops the nation in the number of young offenders condemned to life in prison without parole....
[Alison] Parker [from Human Rights Watch] authored a report released last fall that found that 42 states permit judges and juries to condemn juveniles to life in prison without parole, despite widespread global rejection of that penalty for young offenders. Pennsylvania leads the nation in the number of juvenile lifers, with more than 330 [and] ... 59 percent of the juveniles serving life-without-parole sentences nationally had no prior criminal convictions before being placed in prison for life, according to Parker's report....
[Advocates of reform] point to New Jersey as a model, where murder convicts face a minimum of 30 years in prison without parole. Judges then decide if the case warrants a more severe penalty based on the circumstances. While the Garden State allows juveniles to be sentenced to life in prison without parole, the Amnesty International study found no juvenile lifers there. States that don't allow life-without-parole sentences for juveniles are Alaska, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, New Mexico, New York and West Virginia; the District of Columbia also forbids them.
The report referenced in this article is entitled "The Rest of Their Lives: Life Without Parole for Child Offenders in the United States" and is available at this link. As the title of my post hints, I think that, in the wake of the Roper decision precluding the application of the death penalty to juvenile offenders, the next notable Eighth Amendment battleground could be LWOP sentences for juveniles.
But the data suggests that, while perhaps cruel, LWOP sentences for juveniles are not unusual. Indeed, it is remarkable and telling that Pennsylvania has over 100 more defendants serving LWOP sentences for juvenile offenses than defendants on its death row. That fact alone leads me back to my recent rant that many other defendants besides those on death row merit the attention of public policy groups and others concerned about the operation of our criminal justice system.
February 15, 2006 at 01:55 PM | Permalink
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Comments
In Texas, prosecutors' desire to put juvies in prison forever after Roper was why LWOP passed here last year. The same legislation removed the sentence of life with possibility for parole after 40 years in capital cases. Personally, I thought it was a bad deal, but the anti-DP groups supported it.
Posted by: Scott | Feb 15, 2006 2:55:55 PM
I am a grad student in criminal justice and would
appreciate any info you might have concerning
juveniles and their life without parole.
Posted by: Mary DeNinno | Jun 28, 2006 9:05:15 AM
Pennsylvania Constitution prohibits "cruel punishment". So, by this article's statement that LWOP for a juvenile is indeed "cruel punishment", PA's 1st place lead for sentencing juveniles to LWOP violates it's own constitution. If only the state would realize this and correct it, we'd be on to something positive here.
Posted by: R Downey | Aug 27, 2006 1:14:26 PM
I find it hard to believe that juveniles can be held for life!
This was a very informative blog and I was shocked.I can see it at maybe 14 or older,especially the likes of Kip Kinkel or the Columbine crew,but children under 12 I couldn't possibly be ok with it.Yes there has to be accountability,but is this really the answer?
Posted by: carolynne | Jan 25, 2007 11:32:27 PM
I am a senior lecturer in Crime, Law, and Justice at Penn State and regularly teach a law and society course. This semester, when selecting materials for the part of the course I devote to the criminal justice system, I chose a PBS Frontline video, "When Kids Get Life" (viewable online at the Frontline website), but admit that I never really considered the issue of juveniles receiving life without parole before watching the video. My focus was always on juveniles and the death penalty. I intend to expand my coverage of juvenile LWOP in future semesters, especially in light of Pennsylvania's distinction of leading the U.S. in juvenile LWOP sentences and will be happy to share any new information/perspectives that I encounter.
In the meantime, I strongly recommend the Frontline video to anyone interested in this topic.
Thanks to you, Professor Berman, for your extremely helpful website. I've bookmarked it for future reference.
Posted by: Howard Smith | Nov 29, 2007 12:42:48 PM
I am a masters in criminal justice student and an advocate for Juvenile Justice reform. I wrote a very informative paper for a procedure class if anybody is interested I have it in Word 07 and pdf format. Email me if you'd like a copy. stephen.schofield@sbcglobal.net
Posted by: Steve | Jan 7, 2008 8:59:04 PM
Can someone versed in law explain to me how a judge can sentence a juvenile to life in prison and then add 15-20 years on top of that? How can a juvenile do the 15-20 years on top of a life sentence if they're dead? Appreciate any responses. By the way - this is in reference to a crime committed back in 1990.
Posted by: Kim Muhammad | May 4, 2008 1:47:32 PM
I am friend of a juvenile without parole. He has been in prison for 27 years. He did not actually commit the murder but helped dispose of the body, in fear for his own life. I just don't understand these laws and how some people commit murder and are out within a matter of years. And here is Scott, who grew up in prison without the chance of ever being released. When is punishment over??? In death? These were decisions that were totally wrong on his part...but he was a 15 year old child at the time. I'd appreciate any information on how to go about seeking an appeal for him if thats even possible after all these years.
I do find your site interesting and the information useful especially seeing how different laws are from state to state. We are in Pennsylvania and I to me it sounds like the toughest state on juvenile's sentenced to life. Is there any information that I may find useful in pursuing any kind of appeal?
Posted by: Cheryl | Jun 5, 2008 7:48:10 PM
I am friend of a juvenile without parole. He has been in prison for 27 years. He did not actually commit the murder but helped dispose of the body, in fear for his own life. I just don't understand these laws and how some people commit murder and are out within a matter of years. And here is Scott, who grew up in prison without the chance of ever being released. When is punishment over??? In death? These were decisions that were totally wrong on his part...but he was a 15 year old child at the time. I'd appreciate any information on how to go about seeking an appeal for him if thats even possible after all these years.
I do find your site interesting and the information useful especially seeing how different laws are from state to state. We are in Pennsylvania and I to me it sounds like the toughest state on juvenile's sentenced to life. Is there any information that I may find useful in pursuing any kind of appeal?
Posted by: Cheryl | Jun 5, 2008 7:48:14 PM
Posted by: | Oct 14, 2008 10:33:13 PM
I am a 19 year old male who has been in trouble with the law. I served a little less than a year at a tough juvenile prison. I was released from juvenile probation when I was discharged from the facility where I served my time. I know my experiences are insignificant compared to juveniles who are sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, but I feel that I must speak out anyway because not long ago, I was headed down that road and I know many people, juveniles and adults alike, who are serving prison sentences condemning them to a lonely death behind bars. In my opinion the United State's toughening stance on crime is not stopping or even reducing violent crime, drug dealing, drug use, or any other kind of crime. Judges, prosecutors, and law enforcment are simply locking people up and throwing away the key. And what is even more unjust is that they are locking people up for life for non-violent crimes. The so-called "three strike Rule" where a person is simply categorized as a "habitual felon" and classified as "irredeemable" after their third felony conviction, has lead to more packed prisons and more lives that are simply thrown away. We as Americans need to collectively understand that it is cruel and unusual to simply lock people up for life. And I know that most Americans have no sympathy for killers, rapists, and drug dealers, but like it or not, these are people to. They have mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters just like you. They eat, drink, breathe, bleed, feel, and hurt just like you. Yes, SOME of them have comitted monstrous crimes, but everyone deserves a second chance. And my heart does go out to the victims and their families but my heart also goes out to the men and women, boys and girls, who will never be a free person again. "LET HIM WHO IS WITHOUT SIN CAST THE FIRST STONE"
REDEMPTION IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE.
Posted by: J. DeNiri | May 4, 2009 5:12:17 PM
