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Mass. bans life without parole for adults under 21. Do you agree?
The court ruled that "the brains of emerging adults are not fully mature."
Massachusetts became the first in the nation to ban life sentences without the possibility of parole for adults under 21 after a recent ruling from the state’s highest court.
Before this ruling, Massachusetts was only one of 10 states that required life without parole for first-degree murderers aged 18 through 20. Similar sentences for juveniles, however, were found unconstitutional in a 2013 Supreme Judicial Court decision. Now, in a 4-3 decision, the court said that “emerging adults” — aged 18, 19, and 20 — have similar neurological development as juveniles and should have the same protections.
“The brains of emerging adults are not fully mature. Specifically, the scientific record strongly supports the contention that emerging adults have the same core neurological characteristics as juveniles have,” Chief Justice Kimberly Budd wrote in the decision.
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The case, Commonwealth v. Sheldon Mattis, will apply retroactively, giving about 70 people serving life sentences the chance for parole, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office.
Mattis was convicted of murder in the shooting death of Jaivon Blake in 2011. The then 18-year-old was sentenced to life without parole. His co-defendant, who was 17, was sentenced to 15 years. Last week’s decision will allow Mattis’ case to be resentenced.
The decision has been praised by criminal justice groups The Sentencing Project, Juvenile Law Center, and the Roderick and Solange MacArthur Justice Center, who wrote an amicus brief in support of Mattis.
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“It’s a positive step forward and sign that Massachusetts and other states recognize that the harshest of sentences with no opportunity for redemption is inappropriate,” Andrea Lewis Hartung of the MacArthur Justice Center said in a statement.
Tell us: Do you agree with the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s ruling? Share your thoughts on the decision to ban life without parole for adults under 21 by filling out the survey below or e-mailing us at [email protected] and we may feature your response in a future Boston.com article or on our social media channels.
Are 18-20 year olds too young to be given life without parole?
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