Gene Downing

2 weeks ago | statecourtreport.org | Kathrina Szymborski Wolfkot |Gene Downing |David Brown |Rex Bossert

The court has perhaps never been friendlier to criminal justice reform. This month, the Michigan Supreme Court announced that mandatory life-without-parole sentences for people under the age of 21 violate the state constitution’s ban on cruel or unusual punishment. The court also held, based on a separate recent decision, that this rule applies retroactively. These decisions are the latest from a court that’s been steadily carving out a path against excessive sentencing.