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GA juveniles left behind despite sentencing reforms

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Tuesday, August 27, 2024   

Efforts to reform juvenile sentencing in the U.S. have made significant strides, but a new report shows that Georgia is lagging behind.

A study by The Sentencing Project says two in five people sentenced to life without parole were 25 or younger at the time of their crime.

Co-Author and project Co-director of Research Ashley Nellis said brain science supports the idea that people are most prone to criminal behavior in their late teens to mid-twenties, a period of heightened risk-taking and impulsivity.

She said she believes that young offenders deserve a second chance as they mature and says some states have taken steps to do that.

"Some states have banned life sentences for youths," said Nellis, "and done the right thing to extend it to those serving life with parole."

Currently, 900 people in Georgia are serving life without parole, or a virtual life sentence, for crimes they committed before turning 18.

The report also uncovered racial disparities, with over 80% of those serving juvenile life without parole in Georgia being Black. Nationally, that figure is 53%.

Nellis said it's important to extend reforms across the country, as landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases since 2010 have recognized that minors should not be held to the same standards of culpability as adults.

The rulings acknowledge that youths are more susceptible to risk-taking and impulsive behavior, especially in emotionally charged situations.

"The U.S. Supreme Court has weighed in on life without parole for juveniles, and severely limited the allowable use of life without parole for young people," said Nellis, "but they stopped short of telling the states how to implement."

The report urges policymakers to craft reforms that reflect current brain science and apply to all forms of life imprisonment and extreme sentencing.

While 28 states have banned life without parole for minors, and five have eliminated it entirely, Georgia has yet to follow suit.




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