Bryan Stevenson After Cases
I visited the Supreme Court this week to see Bryan Stevenson of Equal Justice Initiative present two cases. (iCare supports EJI.) It was my first visit to the Supreme Court. I was honored and moved to see the Court in action and felt a new appreciation for the process, independent of the current justices and the cases being heard.
I met Bryan when he was in law school and have followed his career and EJI since then. The cases EJI takes are often controversial, defending the rights of people who have sometimes committed terrible crimes. The two cases this day involved murders in which fourteen year olds were involved. The core question of the day was whether it violates our Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment to sentence a 14-year old to life in prison without the possibility of parole. With our current culture of retribution and punishment – I was shocked to hear it so openly acknowledged and accepted, I think this is an important question. After all, we are the only country in the world that puts kids in jail for the rest of their lives with no possibility of parole. We also make this sentence mandatory in some states, with no discretion given to the judge or jury.
Although I am not religious, I do believe in the possibility of redemption, especially for kids who have not yet cognitively or emotionally fully developed. Is it reasonable to conclude up front that a child, after some decades of prison, has no chance to change or ever participate in society? I say no.
These cases were not about guilt or innocence. They were about harshness of punishment. I think we need to ask such questions more often. EJI is staffed by people who deeply believe in equal justice and dedicate their lives to achieving it. I am proud to support EJI’s work through iCare.
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