One of the emerging controversies in the juvenile justice world is whether juvenile offenders, perhaps as young as 13, should be sentenced to life without parole in adult court. As noted in a previous posting – May 13 – the Supreme Court is set to take on two such cases, challenging the appropriateness of essentially sentencing such young offenders to “die in prison.” One of the major issues at hand will be whether the brain development research that helped support a ban on the imposition of the death penalty for young offenders in the Roper case should be applied to an unreviewable sentence of life in prison. The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think-tank, has taken on this issue by releasing a report titled Adult Time for Adult Crimes: Life Without Parole for Juvenile Killers and Violent Teens, in which they attempt to counter the arguments of advocates who are pushing for at least some kind of opportunity for review of such “life without parole” decisions. With the Supreme Court taking up these cases in the fall, advocates on both sides will be gearing up for this debate.
New Guidance on Youth Justice Fines & Fees
Learning that your child has gotten in trouble with the law is one of the most difficult and stressful times in a parent or guardian’s life. But in Wisconsin, courts can make matters worse by charging families thousands of dollars, sometimes even garnishing tax...
