MONSTER UNDER THE BED: THE NIGHTMARE OF LEAVING JUVENILE LIFE SENTENCES UP TO THE PAROLE BOARD

• Published in: South Dakota law review 2019-03, Vol.64 (1), p.126
• Main Author: Ramstad, Erica L
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Demographic aspects; Evaluation; Juvenile offenders; Laws, regulations and rules; Life imprisonment; Parole boards; Powers and duties; Remedies
• ISSN: 0038-3325

Parole functions as a method to release prisoners early for good behavior. Prisoners generally appreciate this release mechanism, and states use it to combat overcrowding in prisons. But for individuals serving de facto life sentences-sentences with release dates past the prisoner's natural Iifespan--the parole system functions more as the angel of death than a "get out of jail early" card because the board determines the prisoner's fate. Should he die behind bars or return to society? Prisoners serving life sentences for crimes they committed as juveniles are particularly at the mercy of the parole board. In early 2017, the Supreme Court of South Dakota held that two sentences, a 92-year sentence and a 200-year sentence for two 14-year-old individuals convicted of homicide, were constitutional. The Court reasoned that because the individuals would be eligible for parole within their natural lifespans, the sentences were neither cruel nor unusual. Despite recognizing that the parole board may never release them, the Court maintained that the youth still had "a meaningful opportunity for release. " By leaving the fate of South Dakota juvenile lifers up to the parole board, the Court misinterpreted United States Supreme Court precedent that banned juvenile life sentences.