Minnesota Just Became the 28th State to Abolish Life-Without-Parole Sentences for Children
In May of 2023, Minnesota became the latest state to abolish life-without-parole sentences for juvenile offenders, the 28th state to enact criminal justice reform laws that take a different approach to adolescent crime and punishment.
What Occurred in Minnesota
Representative Sandra Feist (DFL-New Brighton) put forward HF1300, a bill that would make those individuals convicted of life imprisonment while a juvenile—or those convicted of a period of confinement that would exceed 15 years while a juvenile—eligible for early supervised release after serving 15 years in custody. While the bill does not guarantee release, it does give incarcerated individuals a chance to go before a parole board, granting those individuals who previously had zero chance for parole a second chance at life outside of prison.1
Photo by Glenn R. McGloughlin/Shutterstock.com
Part of the bill’s proposal included the creation of the Juvenile Review Board, which would have the power to release inmates into community supervision programs such as probation. The board would conduct an initial release hearing once an inmate became eligible. The board would consider the inmate’s behavior while in prison, assess psychological evaluations of the inmate, and examine risks (if any) to the community of releasing the inmate. The Review Board will not have the power to release offenders who have not yet completed chemical dependency, sex offender, and/or mental health treatment.
Proponents of the bill say crimes committed by children, adolescents, and teens often differ from those committed by adults, yet they are usually treated similarly. Preston Shipp, a former prosecutor in Tennessee, said prosecutions of juvenile offenders almost always focus on the crime committed by the juvenile, not the circumstances in the juvenile’s life that may have led to that crime or the potential for positive change that the juvenile may have. “It is important to not be so focused on the punishment that we neglect to think about the promise that all kids have to make positive change,” said Shipp.2
After Minnesota’s bill was put on the floor, it was debated, taken through several committees, passed by the State House, approved by the State Senate, and signed into law by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on May 26th, 2023. More than two dozen states have passed similar legislation. Of the 950 people released due to such legislation, their recidivism rate (returning to crime after release) has held steady at just 1.14%.
“The idea that we’re going to hold very young children to a life behind bars does not sit well with me…”
The Minnesota bill moved swiftly through the state’s legislative chambers because it had bipartisan support. “The idea that we’re going to hold very young children to a life behind bars does not sit well with me,” said Representative Patricia Mueller, a Minnesota Republican who supported the bill. “We have to find that balance between holding people accountable and allowing them to be new, to be redeemed.”
While the new law focused primarily on giving a second chance to people in prison who committed crimes as juveniles and were now serving long sentences, the bill also put forward new programs for addressing crimes committed by young people. The law created a statewide Office of Restorative Practices, which was established to promote alternative, community-based approaches to hold minors accountable for crimes while simultaneously responding to victims’ needs and addressing the underlying issues that lead some children to commit crimes. The law also established state grants to provide counties with the funds they need to maintain the new programs outlined in the law.
Proponents of the legislation supported the comprehensive nature of it, saying the new law (a package of nine separate laws) would be a move in the right direction for Minnesota criminal justice. “Too often, the criminal legal system just focuses on punishment,” said Justin Terrell, executive director of the Minnesota Justice Research Center. “But expanding restorative outcomes and making it a priority for the system means that you’re addressing the harm that’s been caused and that people can actually move on from that harm—and that helps create safe communities.” Looking to the future, it is hoped the new legislation’s comprehensive nature will improve outcomes for juvenile offenders in Minnesota, provide victims with the support they need, and empower communities to tackle underlying issues that lead children to crime.3
A Template for Similar Reforms Across the Nation
The United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world, both in the total number of people in prison in the country and in terms of the per capita incarceration rate. The U.S. incarcerates about two million people, a 500% increase in imprisonment since 1970. Though the U.S. represents just 4% of the world’s population, it holds about 20% of the world’s prisoners.4
Despite this approach, decades of rising incarceration rates occurring simultaneously as crime rates have continued to climb shows that imprisonment alone is not an effective crime deterrent. Further, recidivism rates in the U.S. are high, more than 50% in some states. That means the threat of imprisonment fails to prevent people from committing crimes, and those who go to prison often do not experience the reform that prison is supposed to give them.
People who commit crimes need help getting to the underlying reasons why they committed crimes in the first place. They must receive educational services inside prison, job training, employment, housing placement, and other support services to transition into civilian life post-incarceration. Criminal justice reform is often helpful when it takes a more compassionate, rehabilitative stance toward incarceration rather than focusing solely on punishment.
Sources Cited:
- HouseMN. “Information for HF1300.” Minnesota House of Representatives, 2023. house.mn.gov
- HouseMN. “Potential for release proposed for juvenile offenders with life sentences.” Minnesota House of Representatives, 2023. house.mn.gov
- EJI. “Minnesota Abolishes Juvenile Life-Without-Parole Sentences.” Equal Justice Initiative, 2023. eji.org
- ACLU. “Mass Incarceration.” American Civil Liberties Union, 2023. aclu.org
