Poster #58 - Second Chances: Capital Murder Defendants Sentenced to Life in Prison with the Possibility of Parole

• In Event: Poster Session I (posters 1 - 79)

Abstract

Capital offenders who are eligible for parole represent an understudied population. Although their crimes place them among the “worst of the worst,” a number of these individuals, in the post–Gregg era, have been granted the opportunity to reenter society and experience a second chance at life. This research follows a group of capital offenders in North Carolina sentenced post-Gregg (1977 – 1994) who were eligible for parole. We explore three research questions: what happened to these capital defendants, what case characteristics predict parole release, and what are the post-release outcomes among parole capital defendants. Results indicate that those paroled served an average of 25.78 years, case factors such as blameworthiness, dangerousness, and extra-legal factors influenced parole decisions, and once on parole, very few were convicted of a new offense. Among the "worst of the worst"; those held to be irredeemable and who were eventually released back into society, did not pose a serious threat to society. Consistent with prior research, we find that these individuals have low rates of serious reoffending, raising questions about the utility of Life Without the Possibility of Parole for all capital defendants.

Authors

• Beth Bjerregaard, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

• Sondra Joanne Fogel, University of South Florida

• M. Dwayne Smith, University of South Florida