People v. Stovall
As the result of plea agreements, Montez Stovall was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for second degree murder committed when he was a juvenile. However Michigan’s parole process fails to offer any “meaningful opportunity for release” as required by Graham.
Juvenile Law Center, along with Juvenile Sentencing Project, and American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, filed an amicus brief in the Michigan Supreme Court on behalf of Mr. Stovall’s application for leave to appeal. Our brief urged the court to grant review in order to address the constitutional deficiencies in Michigan’s parole process and ensure that Michigan provides youth sentenced to parolable life a meaningful opportunity for release.
In lieu of granting leave to appeal, the Michigan Supreme Court remanded the case to the Court of Appeals for consideration. The Michigan Court of Appeals found that Mr. Stovall’s sentence of life with the possibility of parole does not violate due process or constitute cruel or unusual punishment. In a dissenting opinion, Judge Gleicher stated that Mr. Stovall “has no meaningful opportunity for release before he is elderly. [He] now serves a life sentence that is parolable in name only, and therefore violates the central precepts of Miller.”
Mr. Stovall filed a second application for leave to appeal in the Michigan Supreme Court. Juvenile Law Center joined Juvenile Sentencing Project and American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan in filing an amicus brief in support of Mr. Stovall, arguing that Michigan’s sentencing and parole system does not provide those sentenced to parolable life as youth with the realistic and meaningful opportunity for release to which they are constitutionally entitled.
The Michigan Supreme Court granted Mr. Stovall’s application for leave to appeal. Juvenile Law Center, Juvenile Sentencing Project, American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, and attorney Deborah Labelle filed an amicus brief in the Michigan Supreme Court in support of Mr. Stovall, arguing that the federal and Michigan constitutions prohibit life sentences for youth absent a parole process that provides a meaningful and realistic opportunity for release, and that Michigan’s parole process fails to provide such an opportunity for individuals sentenced to parolable life as youth.
The Michigan Supreme Court vacated Mr. Stovall’s sentence, holding that it constitutes a cruel or unusual punishment as prohibited by the Michigan Constitution.