FW: Michigna's Unfair Sentencing Of Youth
Rosendo Delgado
From: Karl Gregory [mailto:gregor...@hotmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2009 1:36 PM
To: ros...@luum.org
| From: | |
| Sent: | Wed 3/25/09 12:27 PM |
| To: | gregor...@hotmail.com |
 |
|
Dear Karl D., Yesterday, the Oakland Press got it wrong.
The Press ran an inaccurate editorial regarding
our efforts to reform the harsh policies that have put over 300
Michigan young people in prison for life without any possibility of
parole. Will you help us correct the record
by sending a letter to the Oakland Press today? Read our
suggested talking points below. The editors have a fundamental
misunderstanding regarding the facts of Michigan's juvenile life without
parole statute. According to the editorial, "Michigan treats teens
ages 14 to 16 as juveniles in
court." False. In homicide cases,
Michigan children are automatically charged as adults unless the
prosecutor elects to pursue the case in juvenile court, and judges have no
discretion to order that the child be tried as a juvenile. The editorial also admits that "there may be
some extenuating circumstances in some cases" and that "if there was any
doubt, then the kids should have been given a lesser sentence."
But this is precisely what is wrong with Michigan's juvenile life
without parole law. If a child is found guilty of
first-degree murder, the judge is required to sentence that child to life
in prison without the possibility of parole. The judge does not have
discretion to impose a lesser sentence. E-mail your letter to allen...@oaklandpress.com
using the suggested talking points below. Remember to put
the letter in your own words rather than using these talking points
verbatim, to keep your letter to 250 words or less, and to include your
U.S. mail address and phone number. Suggested talking points: * Michigan law requires mandatory
sentencing to life in adult prisons with no possibility of parole for all
children convicted of first degree and felony murder, even if the juvenile
was not the murderer. Judges have no choice, but to sentence these
children to life without any possibility of parole, no matter
what the circumstances. * Passage of juvenile sentencing reform
legislation does not guarantee release for those serving their sentences.
This legislation only prohibits the mandatory sentencing of children who
are 17 and under to a sentence of life without parole in adult prisons;
allows courts discretion to impose any sentence upon a juvenile that is
consistent with public safety and proportionate punishment; allows an
individual who was 17 or under when he or she committed a crime to be
eligible for parole consideration after having served a minimum of 10
years. * Juvenile life without parole sentences
exist in 43 states, but five states Michigan, Pennsylvania, Louisiana,
Florida and California account for two-thirds of the imprisoned youth
Currently there are more than 350 individuals serving life sentences in
Michigan for crimes committed before their 18th birthday. Half of
the individuals affected by this law were sentenced for crimes committed
when they were 16 years old or younger. * Among the 7 states that do not permit life
without parole sentences for juveniles, there has been absolutely no
evidence of greater risk to public safety. In fact, Michigan’s violent
youth crime rates are nearly equal to those of New Jersey, which has not
sentenced any children in their state to life without parole. * The imposition of life without parole on
minor children is a particularly cruel and disproportionate punishment
that is explicitly prohibited by the International Convention on the
Rights of the Child, and is widely considered a violation of international
law and fundamental human rights. * The US Supreme Court has recognized that youthful offenders do not have the same degree of culpability for their actions as adults, prompting states across the country to abolish this harsh sentencing practice. Getting the facts right on the issue of juvenile life is important. The editors portray children sentenced to life without parole as hardened criminals who necessarily deserve the harshest punishment possible. In fact, many children currently serving a life sentence in Michigan do not match that profile. In many cases, children are charged with and convicted of first-degree murder even though they did not pull the trigger or directly harm the victim in any way. Some children are serving life sentences even though their adult acquiantance who actually killed the victim is serving a lesser sentence. Others are serving life sentences for killing family members who sexually or physically abused them for years. Senator Liz Brater's bill to reform mandatory juvenile sentencing guidelines would at least provide some hope of future parole for children in cases such as these. Thank you for your help in getting the
record straight on behalf of Michigan's children. Sincerely, ********************************************************************************************
Learn more about juvenile life without parole sentencing in Michigan.
Unsubscribe or change your preferences
here.
|
To: sup...@mchr.org; PanAfn...@yahoo.com; af11...@yahoo.com; btho...@michronicle.com; bi...@scupe.com; robert...@att.ent; BBr...@marygrove.edu; Att...@hotmail.com; dbla...@detroitNAACP.org; cal...@netzero.net; elenah...@comcast.net; barone...@gmail.com; erkeish...@uwsem.org; profe...@yahoo.com; f.s...@wayne.edu; FJo...@comcast.net; ab3...@wayne.edu; hhus...@yahoo.com; nofear...@aol.com; j.cu...@wayne.edu; gregor...@hotmail.com; ax0...@wayne.edu; kred...@yahoo.com; ai7...@wayne.edu; mmal...@juno.com; rig...@oakland.edu; harriso...@yahoo.com; ad5...@wayne.edu; Red...@yahoo.com; Rabb...@tkolami.org; ronn...@yahoo.com; ros...@luum.org; rbel...@iuoelocal547.com; how...@oakland.edu; dolangre...@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: New Due Date for MCHR Annual Dinner Sponsors and Ads, April 3
Date: Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:44:49 -0400
From: broom...@aol.com
The invitation will be ready this Thursday-Liv We will do lables and send out by Friday
-----Original Message-----
From: Marge Sears <sup...@mchr.org>
To: Liv Boykins <broom...@aol.com>; Abayomi Azikiwe <PanAfn...@yahoo.com>; Al Fishman <af11...@yahoo.com>; Bankole Thompson <btho...@michronicle.com>; Bill Wylie-Kellermann <bi...@scupe.com>; Bob Sisler <robert...@att.ent>; Brenda Bryant <BBr...@marygrove.edu>; Cary Smith McGehee <Att...@hotmail.com>; Derek Blackmon <dbla...@detroitNAACP.org>; Dorothy Aldridge <cal...@netzero.net>; Elena Herrada <elenah...@comcast.net>; Emily Barone <barone...@gmail.com>; Erkershia Terry <erkeish...@uwsem.org>; Eugene Perrin <profe...@yahoo.com>; Fran Shor <f.s...@wayne.edu>; Frank Joyce <FJo...@comcast.net>; Fred Pearson <ab3...@wayne.edu>; Imam Husam Al-Husainy <hhus...@yahoo.com>; Jeffrey Montgomery <nofear...@aol.com>; Jose Cuello <j.cu...@wayne.edu>; Karl Gregory <gregor...@hotmail.com>; Katrina Fenton <ax0...@wayne.edu>; Kimberly Redigan <kred...@yahoo.com>; Krysti Edmunds <ai7...@wayne.edu>; Margaret Alandt <mmal...@juno.com>; Mark Rigstad <rig...@oakland.edu>; Nicole Harrison <harriso...@yahoo.com>; Perry Mars <ad5...@wayne.edu>; Prasad Venugopal <Red...@yahoo.com>; Rabbi Ernst Conrad <Rabb...@tkolami.org>; Ron Amen <ronn...@yahoo.com>; Rosendo Delgado <ros...@luum.org>; Russ Bellant <rbel...@iuoelocal547.com>; Shea Howell <how...@oakland.edu>; Trey Greene <dolangre...@hotmail.com>
Sent: Mon, 9 Mar 2009 1:58 pm
Subject: New Due Date for MCHR Annual Dinner Sponsors and Ads, April 3
Internet Explorer 8 – Now Available. Faster, safer, easier. Download FREE now!