Criminal procedure — juveniles, life sentences

Posted June 5, 2019 3:21 PM

Where a trial court imposes a sentence greater than 40 years on a juvenile offender, it is a de facto life sentence and the court must explicitly consider the defendant’s youth and its attendant characteristics, an inquiry that must go beyond awareness of the defendant’s age and consideration of any presentence investigation reports.The 1st District Appellate Court reversed and remanded a decision from Cook County Circuit Judge Carol M. Howard.On Sept. 13, 1999, Melvin Harvey was convicted of the first-degree …

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