Michigan bans automatic life sentences for offenders under 21
LANSING, Mich. (FOX 2) - Michiganders younger than 21 can no longer receive an automatic life sentence, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
The 5-2 ruling prohibits offenders who are 19 or 20 when they commit murder from receiving life sentences without parole automatically. It will also be applied retroactively, meaning that people currently serving life sentences for crimes committed when they were 19 or 20 can seek resentencing. According to the State Appellate Defender Office (SADO), more than 580 young offenders fall under this category.
A 2012 United States Supreme Court ruling ordered that offenders younger than 18 cannot receive mandatory life sentences. Michigan's Supreme Court expanded this to 18-year-old offenders when it ruled that sentencing an 18-year-old to automatic life violates the state's constitutional ban on cruel or unusual punishment.
The latest ruling expands this further.
The backstory:
This most recent decision comes after the Michigan Supreme Court was asked to review Andrew Czarnecki and Montario Taylor's cases. Czarnecki was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life without parole when he was 19, while Taylor received the same conviction and sentence when he was 20.
"Mandatorily subjecting 19- and 20-year-old defendants convicted of first-degree murder to an LWOP sentence violates the principle of proportionality derived from the Michigan Constitution and constitutes unconstitutionally cruel punishment," the justices wrote in their ruling.
According to the court's brief, scientific research about late-adolescent brains were reviewed by the court. This research showed that 19 year olds and 20 year olds have brains that are more similar to those of juveniles than those of older adults, according to the court.
"The impulsivity of the late-adolescent brain is transient and capable of change, making imposition of mandatory LWOP on this class of individuals particularly cruel," the justices wrote.
Dig deeper:
The banning of automatic life without parole sentences does not mean that all offenders under 21 will never receive a life sentence. Instead, courts trying these cases will need to look at cases individually and decide if young offenders could be rehabilitated.
For instance, the Oxford High School shooter, who was 15 when he killed four classmates, underwent an extensive hearing before a judge ruled that life without parole was an appropriate sentence despite his age.
What they're saying:
SADO called the decision a "landmark ruling."
"Young people can and do mature into responsible individuals who can give back to their communities. The Michigan Constitution requires courts to account for that," said Maya Menlo, the SADO attorney who represented Czarnecki and Taylor.
The Sentencing Project, an organization that works to minimize imprisonment rates, also praised the ruling. Research from the organization was cited in the court's brief.
"We applaud this decision by the Michigan Supreme Court. A wealth of brain science research makes clear that emerging adults are akin to teenagers under 18 – more impulsive, more easily influenced by peers, and also capable of remarkable growth and rehabilitation, said Liz Komar, sentencing reform counsel at The Sentencing Project. "Young people are especially deserving of second chances and individualized sentencing. This decision reflects a growing national movement recognizing that emerging adults deserve special sentencing consideration, and we hope that it will serve as a model to other states."