Juvenile Lifers and Neuroscience
October 14, 2015
10/10/15 – Five counties nationwide account for a quarter of all individuals sentenced as juveniles to life without parole, according to a report released just before the U.S. Supreme Court began examining whether to extend its ban on such sentences to retroactively cover those already incarcerated. One argument often cited for such a change: As detailed in Issues by a pioneering neuroscientist, young brains are not fully formed and thus juveniles may not be fully capable of assessing the risks and consequences of their actions. Check here for an update on opening oral arguments at the court.