Contact: Gilien Silsby, USC Gould School of Law, 213-500-8673 or 213-740-9690
California Governor Jerry Brown Signs Bill Offering Hope To Juvenile Offenders
USC Law's Post-Conviction Justice Project co-sponsored bill that could allow parole to juveniles sentenced as adults
USC Expert Available
HEIDI RUMMEL, co-director of USC's Post-Conviction Justice Project and former federal prosecutor, can discuss the impact of the juvenile offender sentencing bill. She can talk about how eligible juvenile inmates - now serving life sentences - may have their cases reviewed for possible release as early as 15 years into their prison sentence. She can also discuss the law's history – this is only the second piece of legislation to modify or reduce sentences in California in more than 20 years — the other being the juvenile life without parole legislation that PCJP worked to pass last year.
Contact Rummel at (818) 720-2620 or (213) 740-2865
Background: SB 260 was signed by Gov. Brown on Monday evening and will impact thousands of inmates who are serving long-term sentences. There are more than 6,500 inmates in state prisons who were under 18 when they committed their crimes but were prosecuted as adults.