One More Shot for Those With Juvenile Life Sentences
In Pennsylvania, more than 400 inmates serving life without the possibility of parole for homicides committed as juveniles will get one more shot at the possibility of getting out of prison.
January 12, 2015 at 12:06 PM
6 minute read
In Pennsylvania, more than 400 inmates serving life without the possibility of parole for homicides committed as juveniles will get one more shot at the possibility of getting out of prison.
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments in Toca v. Louisiana, No. 14-6381. In 1984, George Toca was 17 when he accidently shot and killed a friend during an armed robbery. Toca was convicted of second-degree murder and automatically sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, as required by Louisiana law.
In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S.____ (2012), that mandatory life imprisonment without parole for juvenile murderers was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court said such mandatory life sentences for juvenile offenders violated the Eighth Amendment's ban against cruel and unusual punishment. The court did not say that life in prison for juveniles was excessive, only that mandatory life was unconstitutional. More importantly, the court did not say whether the decision was retroactive.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Trending Stories
- 1The Law Firm Disrupted: For Big Law Names, Shorter is Sweeter
- 2Wine, Dine and Grind (Through the Weekend): Summer Associates Thirst For Experience in 'Real Matters'
- 3'That's Disappointing': Only 11% of MDL Appointments Went to Attorneys of Color in 2023
- 4What We Know About the Kentucky Judge Killed in His Chambers
- 5'I'm Staying Everything': Texas Bankruptcy Judge Halts Talc Trials Against J&J
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250