Posts in 'Amicus Curiae'

Argued that Miller v. Alabama's ban on mandatory life without parole sentences should apply retroactively to those handed down that sentence before Miller, and that every child convicted of murder in Michigan must receive an individualized sentence and, if life without parole is determined to be appropriate, the child must be afforded a meaningful opportunity for release.

Argued that Illinois' statutory sentencing scheme is unconstitutional because it subjects youth to mandatory sentencing schemes upon conviction without the opportunity for any judicial review before being tried in adult court.

Argued that Petitioner's sentencing, as a juvenile, of life without possibility of parole is unconstitutional pursuant to the United States Supreme Court’s ruling in Miller v. Alabama, which banned mandatory life without parole sentences for juveniles.

Argued that the court should clarify that Miller establishes a presumption against imposing juvenile life without parole; establish clear guidelines to ensure juvenile life without parole is not imposed arbitrarily and capriciously; and hold that juvenile life without parole can never be imposed when a juvenile is convicted based on a finding of “complicity.”

Argued that the U.S. Supreme Court's ban on mandatory life without parole sentences in Miller v. Alabama should apply retroactively to juveniles who were sentenced to life without parole before the ban. 

Argued that California's sentencing statute, in which the presumptive sentence for any juvenile age 16 or older convicted of first degree murder with special circumstances is life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, is unconstitutional under Miller v. Alabama. 

Argued that two juveniles' sentences of 70 and 90 years in prison for non-homicide offenses are unconstitutional pursuant to the United States Supreme Court's rulings in Graham v. Florida and Miller v. Alabama. 

Argued that Massachusetts' sentencing scheme for juveniles 14 and older convicted of first degree murder is unconstitutional under Miller v. Alabama and that the Massachusetts Supreme Court must look to existing statutes to determine what constitutional sentence may be imposed. 

Argued that Colorado's mandatory statutory sentencing scheme for juveniles convicted of first degree murder is unconstitutional, pursuant to the United States Supreme Court's ruling in Miller v. Alabama. 

Petitioner Joseph Wang was sentenced to life without parole as a juvenile in federal court in New York. He had already filed federal habeas petitions before Miller was decided, and he now seeks to have his sentence revisited in light of the United States Supreme Court’s ruling in Miller v. Alabama.