NC rep: Teens sentenced to prison long ago are finally getting just treatment
The writer chairs the NC Juvenile Sentence Review Board. Fellow board members Allison Duncan (a former federal judge), Thomas Walker (former US Attorney) and Mickey Michaux (an attorney and former member of the NC legislature) signed on to this op-ed.
Earlier this month, Gov. Roy Cooper announced his well-reasoned decision to grant clemency to three people sentenced to decades in prison for crimes they committed as children.
In my many years in public service, rarely have I seen such a simple action accomplish so much good.
This action by the governor serves the interests of justice, advances public safety, helps to address North Carolina’s severe racial disparities in sentencing, and brings our state’s practices closer in line with today’s widespread scientific and legal consensus about children’s culpability for criminal behavior.
In 2021, on the recommendation of the Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice, the governor created a board to carefully review certain cases involving juveniles who have received long sentences and already served many years in prison as a result. The need was apparent. In North Carolina, people committed to prison as juveniles reflected clear racial imbalance.
While people of color constitute only 30% of the state’s population, they comprise 80% of the individuals sentenced before the age of 18.
In addition, North Carolina’s juvenile sentencing system has not kept pace with developments in neuroscience. The criminal justice system for juveniles was largely put into place before the neuroscience of brain development was well-established. Today, doctors know much more about how teenage brains work than they did when the state’s juvenile sentencing rules and guidelines were put into place.
Advances in neuroscience persuaded the U.S. Supreme Court to change the law regarding sentencing juveniles — because teenage brains are still developing and not yet fully functional. The law now recognizes that children, with their incomplete impulse control, inability to fully weigh consequences, and vulnerability to peer pressure, are inherently less culpable than adults for criminal actions.
Cases that the N.C. Juvenile Sentence Review Board reviewed did not reflect changes in the law that took place in the decades after the original sentences were handed down.
When we sat down to carefully review selected juvenile cases we saw people who were 20 or 30 years into serving sentences for crimes committed when they were teenagers. Our knowledge has changed. Laws have changed. So how could it be in the interests of justice to enforce the remaining years on long sentences that were imposed on individuals who in the many years since their crime have been demonstrating maturity and rehabilitation?
When the governor created the Juvenile Sentence Review Board in April 2021, his executive order provided clear direction: we are to recommend cases for clemency consideration after taking into account public safety and the applicant’s disciplinary record, recommendations, maturity, rehabilitation, and much more.
We identified a few exceptional people who, in our view, deserved further consideration for clemency after considering all the criteria. The Department of Public Safety developed a post-release plan for each individual granted clemency and will provide structured monitoring and support following their release.
People can change, and children have a unique capacity for growth and redemption. Despite horrible decisions with serious consequences, these three individuals have demonstrated their rehabilitation. They are ready to return and contribute to their communities. And this act of mercy by the governor is a reflection of our human capacity for redemption.
This story was originally published March 18, 2022 at 4:30 AM with the headline "NC rep: Teens sentenced to prison long ago are finally getting just treatment."