On May 4, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take up two Florida-based cases to determine if sentencing a person who commits an offense while under the age of 18 to live without the parole (LWOP) is cruel and unusual punishment. In Roper v. Simmons (2005) the Supreme Court banned imposing the death penalty on youth who committed an offense before the age of 18, but to date there is really no other direction from the court on how to treat these rare, but serious offenders. Advocates, who use the term “sentenced to die in prison,” suggest that the adult system is ill-equipped to provide the kind of programming and meaningful protections these youth are entitled to. Many states are in the process of considering legislation that would provide these youthful offenders some opportunity for parole review at some point in the process. For more information about this pending case, see http://njjn.org/resource_1198.html.
WEBINAR: Reimagining an Affordable Wisconsin
Learn how we can stop wealth from flowing to the top and invest in what families need. Tuesday, June 301–2 pm CT Register Here Every family deserves a fair shot, no matter their race, background, or zip code. But, too many of us struggle to afford the basic...
