To the Editor:
Re "Juvenile Killers in Jail for Life Seek a Reprieve" (news article, April 21):
The Equal Justice Initiative's effort to extend a Supreme Court ruling barring life sentences without parole to those convicted for killings committed at age 13 or 14 is a step in the right direction.
In earlier decisions on juvenile sentencing, the Supreme Court made important assertions that apply to all juvenile offenders - particularly the absence of an "irretrievably depraved character" and a greater capability to change.
The sentence of life in prison without parole for any juvenile offender is a sentence to die in prison. It obliterates all possibility and all incentive for a young person to become rehabilitated.
The United States is the only country in the world that sentences juvenile offenders to life in prison without parole. Such sentences should be abolished.
ANTONIO GINATTA
Advocacy Director, U.S. Program
Human Rights Watch
