A new report by the American Civil Liberties Union examines America’s juvenile parole system, arguing strongly and convincingly that it’s failing. The U.S. Supreme Court has over the last decade prohibited some of the harshest penalties for children. But, the report notes, “thousands of young people are still growing up and dying in prison under long sentences with no real hope of release.”
About 8,000 people in 2013 served parole-eligible life sentences for offenses committed as juveniles. And in many states, parole boards have ultimate say in whether people sentenced decades ago as youths are released.
Many states have rates of parole in the single digits or below. In 2015, for instance, 366 people in Florida served a parole-eligible life sentence for an offense committed with they were under 18. Two (0.5 percent) were granted parole.
The report tells numerous stories of people who were convicted of crimes as youths and spent the next few decades in prison without much hope of getting out, even though many had earned near-perfect records for behavior and work performance.
One reason that parole boards are averse to granting parole is that many board members focus on the severity of the offense committed while placing less emphasis on how long the offender has served, or whether he or she has been rehabilitated and remains a threat to society.
Time alone can bring a certain amount of rehabilitation. Numerous studies have found that children’s ability to control their impulses is not yet fully mature, but that with time most people develop the ability to make good decisions.
The report also examines ways states can improve the fairness of parole proceedings and be more transparent in how they oversee parole boards.
Read the entire report here.
Daniel Allott is deputy commentary editor for the Washington Examiner
