Emerging Adults Sentenced to Die in Prison

• In Event: Research Developments in Life Imprisonment Imposed on Youth

Abstract

The legal demarcation of 18 years old as adulthood rests on outdated notions of adolescence. The human brain is not fully formed until at least one’s mid 20s. Based on the best scientific understanding of human development, ages 18-25 mark a unique stage of life between childhood and adulthood which is recognized within the fields of sociology, psychology, and neuroscience.
In light of this evidence, sentences that allow no review once adolescent development is concluded are especially egregious. But among 30,000 people sentenced to life without parole (LWOP) between 1995 and 2018 reviewed in this study, the peak age for the original offense was well within the age defined as emerging adulthood. Even more troubling is the fact that two thirds (66%) of people sentenced to LWOP as emerging adults are Black. This paper provides a comprehensive examination of those sentenced to LWOP. Implications of these and other findings in this population of people sentenced to die in prison are discussed.

Author

• Ashley Nellis, The Sentencing Project