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Subscribe to RSSWhen the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in late June that states could not sentence juvenile killers to life without the possibility of parole under mandatory sentencing guidelines, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad said he believed the victims were being forgotten.
And so, in a move some legal analysts say flies in the face of the Supreme Court ruling, the governor commuted the life sentences of 38 juveniles, reducing their terms to 60 years, in a bid to make sure they stay behind bars for a very long time.
If the sentences hold, those offenders will face parole boards in their mid-70s, provided they live that long.
“He simply replaced the life sentence with another very long sentence,” said Marsha Levick, chief counsel of the Juvenile Law Center in Philadelphia.
Writing for the majority in Miller v. Alabama, Justice Elena Kagan wrote that in 28 states, juveniles were sentenced to life in prison without consideration for their upbringing, peer pressure or modern brain science. Kagan also noted studies that say few of the teens who commit crimes “develop entrenched patterns of problem behavior.”
“Their ‘lack of maturity’ and ‘underdeveloped sense of responsibility’ lead to recklessness, impulsivity, and heedless risk-taking,” Kagan wrote. Miller is among several rulings since 2002 in which modern brain research had informed the majority's view that children reason differently than adults.
Levick said up to 2,100 juveniles across the country have been sentenced to life without parole under their state’s mandatory sentencing guidelines. Mandatory sentencing means that an individual convicted of a crime receives a pre-determined sentence; as a result, a judge’s discretion is limited. The ruling does not apply to cases where judges are allowed to impose their own sentences.
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Gov. Branstad said Miller disregards the suffering endured by the families of the victims. He said he worried that if he did not commute the offenders' sentences, they would request another hearing and ultimately receive a lesser sentence.
“First-degree murder is an intentional and premeditated crime and those who are found guilty are dangerous and should be kept off the streets and out of our communities,” Branstad said in a statement released Monday.
Gordon Allen, who represents two Iowa women who were sentenced to life as juveniles, called the governor’s action an “overreach.” Allen said the governor misunderstood the court ruling, which says sentences should be determined case by case. He said he was working on how to legally challenge the governor's decision.
“I don’t think a carte blanche with 60 years for everybody is in line with Miller,” he said.
“Branstad said, ‘These are the most heinous criminals around,’” Allen continued. “Quite frankly, some of them are. But some of them are there because of peer pressure.”
Levick, of the Juvenile Law Center, said states are sorting out their response to the Supreme Court ruling.
“The hope is that states will heed the message of the Supreme Court that you cannot sentence children like they are adults,” she said.
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It's premeditated. They took the time to plan and act on it. Their thought process is pretty messed up. And they're probably not getting the proper psychological help, and if they did, they might be looking at many years of therapy. But each case is different, and I'm sure there are kids that killed someone who was abusing them, and they didn't have the smarts to get out, run away. No family support, that leads to a lot of problems in all walks of life. I feel bad for them, and especially for the victims and their families.
So if you commit a heinous crime because of peer pressure, you're OK?
Gimme a break!
Ah, an Obama appointee raises the old 'it takes a village' argument but in the sense that the village must have failed the criminal.
We definitely need a change.
The Supreme Court needs to be concentrating on the corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY that has MADE SLAVES of the American People! Their corrupt Republican OIL, INSURANCE & FINANCIAL corporates need to be refrained from their CAPITALISTIC GREED by REMOVING their INFILTRATED POLITICAL PUPPETS from office! Let our legal system control the correction system, they have been doing a great job for us! Let's get on with what is killing the American way of life for 99% of the American People!!
Their MONOPOLIES have STOLEN the American way of life! It's long overdue for MAJOR CHANGE in our government to remove this corruption permanently so we can get back to True Democracy! The 99% American People's Constitution says OF THE PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE & BY THE PEOPLE! It does not say OF THE CORPORATES, BY THE CORPORATES & FOR THE CORPORATES!
99% American People, vote 100% STRAIGHT DEMOCRATIC, the lives you save WILL be YOURS & your CHILDREN! Let's rid our selves of this corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY that has STOLEN our American way of life and MADE SLAVES OF US and ALL because of their CAPITALISTIC GREED of which there is ZERO CONTROL OVER IT because the corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY has INFILTRATED our Democratic government with their "HAND-PICKED" political puppets, like exlax ETCH-A-SKETCH, John Bonehead and the rest of them! IT'S TIME FOR CHANGE! And, that time is NOW!! Not later, but RIGHT NOW!!!
This commentary is brought to you by a LIFELONG DEVOUT REPUBLICAN, yes, REPUBLICAN, who is totally disgusted with their BLATANT CORRUPTION with NO REGARD for the 99% American People! I have NOTHING personally to gain, except to help my fellow Americans help themselves out of this POLITICAL MESS!
The Supreme Court needs to be concentrating on the corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY that has MADE SLAVES of the American People! Their corrupt Republican OIL, INSURANCE & FINANCIAL corporates need to be refrained from their CAPITALISTIC GREED by REMOVING their INFILTRATED POLITICAL PUPPETS from office!
Their MONOPOLIES have STOLEN the American way of life! It's long overdue for MAJOR CHANGE in our government to remove this corruption permanently so we can get back to True Democracy! The 99% American People's Constitution says OF THE PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE & BY THE PEOPLE! It does not say OF THE CORPORATES, BY THE CORPORATES & FOR THE CORPORATES!
99% American People, vote 100% STRAIGHT DEMOCRATIC, the lives you save WILL be YOURS & your CHILDREN! Let's rid our selves of this corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY that has STOLEN our American way of life and MADE SLAVES OF US and ALL because of their CAPITALISTIC GREED of which there is ZERO CONTROL OVER IT because the corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY has INFILTRATED our Democratic government with their "HAND-PICKED" political puppets, like exlax ETCH-A-SKETCH, John Bonehead and the rest of them! IT'S TIME FOR CHANGE! And, that time is NOW!! Not later, but RIGHT NOW!!!
This commentary is brought to you by a LIFELONG DEVOUT REPUBLICAN, yes, REPUBLICAN, who is totally disgusted with their BLATANT CORRUPTION with NO REGARD for the 99% American People! I have NOTHING personally to gain, except to help my fellow Americans help themselves out of this POLITICAL MESS!
I have read some of the smartest--and dumbest--comments in this case that I think that I have ever seen in postings.....
First, if we can try juvenile offenders as adults, why can't we sentence them accordingly?
Second, if they are correctly sentenced as adults, then ALL of the "adult rules" (good or bad) have to be made available to them.
Third, while the governor may--and I say this advisedly--have "overreacted", please consider that a jury trial requires the court to take into mitigation any factors impacting on a defendant prior to final sentencing. This definitely includes the age of the offender and social background. Further, the question of "salvage" of an offender must also be included in this compilation prior to sentencing.
If these juvenile killers were correctly and appropriately sentenced to life without parole (LWOP), then there had to be powerful and compelling reasons for it. I understand the social angst about mandatory sentencing but We The People did this--through our elected representatives--because we were tired of repeat crime, criminals, ridiculously inadequate existing sentencing processes and were afraid.
We cannot have our cake and eat it, too.....
I hope if one of these kids kill again that it is Kagan that they get. I could do without her mouth running anymore.
That's a very irresponsible thing to say. Insighting someones death online. This is getting too weird and psycho for me.
Rpt fails to mention that the gov's son is himself a murderer who WALKED! I agree w/ the decision but give me a break. Branstad is an idiot of the highest order and a hypocrit. His son was drunk driving and killed others in the 90's during his 1st stent as govenor. I know the article is in reference to 1st degree murder, which is different, but i would at least have mentioned this in the article.
First degree? Premeditated? Go away for life...
We also have to look at accidental deaths, I think it is wrong when someone is accidentally killed, when it is a true accident, why is there a sentence?
As an example, you would never think about killing anybody, you or your kid or wife, their driving down the road, rounding a curve and BAM, someone runs out in front of you, their dead, you are visibly shaken and upset, you didn’t do it on purpose, it was an accident, you wish you could take it back…but you can’t…
Why should you be punished for this?
No negligence, no speeding, no drugs or alcohol involved – just an accident.
If you kill some one in first degree, you think it out, you plan it and you act on it – age doesn’t matter – you need to be punished for life – possibly even put to death.
But an accident is just that…
So let’s make sure these kids should be there, and if so, so be it…
I agree with Terry B.
The Irony to this whole story is that if he wants to make an example out of someone's child??? Why didn't he make an example out of his OWN child. Drove drunk and crossed the line and killed 2 people when he was under age. No big deal right!?! But Brandstad wants to make an example out of OTHER people's children. How this lawless Hypocrite got re-elected is beyond me?
Why can't Illinois have a Governor like this one? Our 'Mighty Quinn' is closing prisons and letting criminals out!
I'd go with the death penalty myself, but since so many people are too limp-wristed to actually enforce laws, 60 years mandatory without parole will have to suffice. Hopefully this really is a 60 year sentence where they have to spend the full 60 years in jail. No early out for good behavior or any other rubbish like that. If it is in fact a law with teeth, and I hope it is, then I'll be curious to see just how low the juvenile crime rate in Iowa falls.
I believe that Iowa does not have the death penalty.
Who knew that being governor meant having power to be judge, jury and sentencing court all in a single act? Open your eyes people, Governor Bradsted's son killed two people when he was sixteen years old and didn't serve one day in jail for it. It happened on Auguest 18th, 1991, but all his actions were sweeped under the rug. The vechile in question was purchases by the Governor's campaign committee and thus owed by the campaign. Mr. Bradsted paid the McCullogh's $200.000 on January 22, 1992 to avoid being sued. I hope Mr. Bradsted can live with his lies to the voters of Iowa when it comes to his son Eric taking the lives of two people. What a hypocrite he is!