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Joint Judiciary hears years of testimony urging end to life-without-parole and a path to parole review
Summary
Hundreds of witnesses — incarcerated people, family members, advocates and formerly incarcerated speakers — told the Joint Committee on the Judiciary the state should allow parole review after long terms, arguing life-without-parole sentences deny rehabilitation and impose heavy costs on families and the state.
Speakers at the Joint Committee on the Judiciary hearing gave hours of testimony urging the Legislature to pass bills that would let people serving life-without-parole apply for parole after serving a long minimum term. Supporters said allowing parole review after 25 years would recognize rehabilitation, reduce costs and correct racial disparities in sentencing.
Supporters made the case in many forms: people currently serving life sentences, family members and community advocates described decades-long incarceration, educational achievements while imprisoned and the ripple effects on families and…
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