MI: Senate, House tee up bills to end juvenile life without parole
Nearly 300 incarcerated Michiganders, currently serving out life sentences for crimes they committed while juveniles without the possibility of parole, may finally be closer to having their sentences reconsidered — more than a decade after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled those sentences unconstitutional.
Democratic lawmakers in both chambers of the Michigan Legislature have previously been unable to advance legislation abolishing juvenile life without parole (JLWOP). With Democrats now controlling the chambers, legislators are hopeful that the newest iterations of the bipartisan bills will receive hearings and a vote.
Five Senate bills and five House bills — introduced last week with both Democratic and Republican co-sponsors — would align Michigan with 26 other states that have taken steps to comply with Miller v. Alabama.
“The United States Supreme Court and the Michigan Supreme Court have ruled that automatically sentencing youth to life without parole is cruel and unusual punishment. Michigan law needs to recognize that juvenile offenders deserve a chance at rehabilitation,” said state Sen. Jeff Irwin 
D-Ann Arbor) on Friday. Irwin sponsors one of the Senate bills and has been vocal on the issue.
https://michiganadvance.com/2023/03/07/senate-house-tee-up-bills-to-end-juvenile-life-without-parole/
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