Perpetual Incarceration: The Role of Mandatory Minimums and Guidelines Departures in Federal Life Sentences

• In Event: Sentencing 6. National and Comparative Perspectives

Abstract

Life sentences without the possibility of parole (LWOP) are an important feature of the modern American penal system, but relatively little research examines the factors that shape the imposition of these sentences. In the federal system, life sentences—all of which are LWOP sentences due to the abolition of federal parole—often result from mandatory minimum sentencing statutes that require life imprisonment. We use USSC data from 2010 to 2017 to investigate the use of mandatory LWOP sentences in federal court. We consider the role of structural inequalities in defining who is convicted under statutes requiring life sentences and who ultimately receives these sentences, and we examine the role that discretionary departures play in contributing to patterns of racial inequality in life imprisonment.

Authors

• Cassia Spohn, Arizona State University

• Brian Johnson, University of Maryland