life-sentence

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Case Title Lower Court Docketed Status Flags Tags Question Presented
25-5476 Leigh Valorie Ford v. Florida Florida 2025-08-27 Denied IFP constitutional-interpretation florida-constitution indefinite-imprisonment judicial-oath life-sentence rule-of-lenity Whether a life sentence without a definite release date violates Florida's constitutional prohibition on 'indefinite imprisonment'
25A196 Gustavo Tijerina Sandoval v. Texas Texas 2025-08-19 Presumed Complete appellate-review capital-murder criminal-procedure due-process life-sentence texas-criminal-law Whether a state appellate court's affirmance of a criminal conviction and life sentence comports with due process when the underlying trial may have i…
24-1111 Damon Peterson v. Ricky D. Dixon, Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections Eleventh Circuit 2025-04-28 Denied certificate-of-appealability eighth-amendment fourteenth-amendment juvenile-offender life-sentence parole-commission Whether a Certificate of Appealability should have issued for a mandatory life-with-parole sentence for a juvenile offender when the state parole comm…
24-5950 Terry Eugene Iversen v. David Pedro, Superintendent, Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution Ninth Circuit 2024-11-12 Denied Response WaivedIFP categorical-approach cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment life-sentence public-indecency recidivist Whether a life sentence without parole for recidivist public indecency violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment
24-5547 Clifton Bean v. Florida Florida 2024-09-16 Denied Response WaivedIFP constitutional-rights criminal-trial fourteenth-amendment jury-composition life-sentence sixth-amendment Does the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments guarantee the right to a twelve-person jury in felony cases with potential life without parole sentences?
24-5306 William Newkirk v. Florida Florida 2024-08-13 Denied IFP constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process life-sentence robbery-firearm sentencing-guidelines Whether the natural life sentences imposed on robbery firearm counts were illegal due to lack of presentence investigation, sentencing hearing, and al…
23-7608 Carney Turner v. United States Eighth Circuit 2024-05-31 Denied Response WaivedIFP appellate-procedure appellate-review criminal-law criminal-sentencing due-process federal-courts federal-jurisdiction judicial-discretion life-sentence sentencing standard-of-review Whether, in federal criminal cases where the district court has imposed a discretionary life sentence, the courts of appeal should employ a de novo st…
23-7100 Robert Merritt v. United States Third Circuit 2024-04-01 Denied Response WaivedIFP Apprendi apprendi-rule constitutional-review criminal-law due-process life-sentence plain-error RICO rico-statute sentencing Whether Merritt's life sentence under RICO statutes violated Apprendi, and is plain-error reverse warranted
23-6512 Douglas Wayne Sokell v. David Pedro, Superintendent, Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution Ninth Circuit 2024-01-18 Denied IFP constitutional-rights cruel-and-unusual-punishment cruel-punishment due-process eighth-amendment habeas-corpus judicial-review life-sentence prisoner-detention recidivism sentencing three-strikes-law Was it constitutional to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole or release, using recidivism (3 strikes) as a main fact, whe…
23A557 William Newkirk v. Florida Florida 2023-12-15 Presumed Complete constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process fundamental-error life-sentence sentencing-hearing Whether a trial court's failure to conduct a sentencing hearing and permit allocution violates a defendant's constitutional due process rights when im…
23-6199 Trayvon Hall v. United States Fourth Circuit 2023-12-08 Denied Response WaivedIFP constitutional-challenge constitutional-rights court-procedure criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing due-process judicial-pronouncement life-sentence plain-language sentencing statutory-interpretation Is a criminal defendant constitutionally entitled to have his sentence executed pursuant to the plain terms of the sentence orally pronounced in his p…
23-5708 In Re Michael Stansell 2023-10-03 Denied IFP constitutional-rights cruel-and-unusual-punishment due-process eighth-amendment equal-protection fifth-amendment life-sentence void-sentence Whether the infliction of a life sentence upon a prisoner where the life tail is not applicable to his offense of conviction constitutes cruel and unu…
23-5167 Jose Suarez v. United States Second Circuit 2023-07-21 Denied Response WaivedIFP accessorial-liability accessorial-participation criminal-culpability criminal-record cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment juvenile-offenders life-sentence life-without-parole mandatory-sentencing sentencing-proportionality Does a mandatory life sentence without parole for an individual who was twenty at the time of the offense, who was without a criminal record, who had …
22-7718 Donnell Bledsoe v. Pearlie Townes California 2023-06-06 Dismissed IFP cherokee-nation civil-rights constitutional-provisions constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process eastern-state-court jurisdiction life-sentence second-generation-offender sovereign-immunity Question not identified
22-7680 Adonne A. Horton v. West Virginia West Virginia 2023-06-01 Denied Response WaivedIFP article-i-section-10 constitutional-law criminal-procedure due-process ex-post-facto fourteenth-amendment life-sentence police-pursuit statutory-interpretation Whether the Lower Court's Application of an Ex Post Facto Law to Affirm Petitioner's Life Sentence for Running From the Police Violated Article I, Sec…
22-7280 Richard Ralph Martinez v. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Governor of New Mexico, et al. Tenth Circuit 2023-04-13 Dismissed IFP criminal-procedure determinate-sentencing due-process habeas-corpus indeterminate-sentencing judicial-review life-sentence new-mexico parole parole-eligibility sentencing Whether the petitioner's due process rights were violated when he was misinformed about the length of his life sentence and parole eligibility require…
22-7141 Donald McDonald v. Illinois Illinois 2023-03-29 Dismissed Response WaivedIFP 14th-amendment 8th-amendment eighth-amendment fourteenth-amendment habitual-criminal-act life-sentence non-violent-felony proportionate-penalties proportionate-penalties-clause sentencing solem-v-helm Whether the decision of the First District Appellate court of Illinois denying Petitioner's proportionate penalty clause claim conflicts with the deci…
22-6762 Ryan Galal Van Dyck v. Arizona Arizona 2023-02-13 Denied Response WaivedIFP 8th-amendment child-pornography cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment life-sentence mandatory-sentencing proportionality sentencing Does a mandatory de facto life sentence for mere possession of child pornography images, when the person has never directly abused or attempted to abu…
22-6555 Steven Charles Hill v. Texas Texas 2023-01-18 Denied IFP criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing cruel-and-unusual-punishment cruel-unusual-punishment due-process evidence-sufficiency jury-verdict life-sentence proportionality sentencing sufficiency-of-evidence Was the evidence sufficient to sustain the jury's guilty verdict?
22-6515 Christopher Raiche v. United States First Circuit 2023-01-10 Denied Response WaivedIFP criminal-sentencing cruel-and-unusual-punishment disproportionate-sentence eighth-amendment first-time-offender grossly-disproportionate life-sentence non-violent-crime sentencing Whether the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against grossly disproportionate prison sentences was triggered by the imposition of a de facto life senten…
22-5840 Joseph Shook v. Florida, et al. Eleventh Circuit 2022-10-14 Denied IFP constitutional-rights criminal-trial due-process evidence evidence-admission evidentiary-hearing ineffective-assistance-of-counsel ineffective-counsel jury-selection life-sentence prejudice prejudicial-testimony right-to-remain-silent Whether a Petitioner who is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole is denied his constitutional rights
21-7457 Gregory Wynn v. Alabama Alabama 2022-03-24 Denied IFP criminal-rehabilitation cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment juvenile-offender juvenile-offenders life-sentence life-without-parole rehabilitation sentencing sentencing-proportionality Whether the sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for a childhood offense is grossly disproportionate, in violation of the E…
21-6986 John Atlas, Jr. v. Patrick Covello, Warden Ninth Circuit 2022-01-27 Denied Response WaivedIFP criminal-street-gang criminal-threats due-process ineffective-assistance intent life-sentence mental-state mental-state-defense schizophrenia trial-counsel Whether Petitioner John Atlas, Jr. stated a prima facie case of ineffective-assistance-of-counsel
21-6879 In Re Allen Fitzgerald Calton 2022-01-18 Dismissed IFP cause-and-prejudice constitutional-rights criminal-procedure evidence-review evidentiary-hearing habeas-corpus innocence innocence-claim life-sentence original-jurisdiction state-court-review Whether transfer to the Supreme Court for hearing pursuant to the court's original habeas jurisdiction is warranted in this exceptional life sentence …
21-6812 Manuel Gerardo Velasquez v. United States Fifth Circuit 2022-01-11 Denied Response WaivedIFP certificate-of-appealability district-court-hearing due-process fifth-circuit ineffective-assistance ineffective-assistance-of-counsel Lafler-v-Cooper life-sentence Whether the Fifth Circuit erred in refusing to grant a certificate of appealability when the record showed Velasquez received ineffective assistance o…
21-6356 Felipe Nieves-Perez v. Texas Texas 2021-11-19 Denied IFP constitutional-rights criminal-procedure due-process eighth-amendment indictment life-sentence motion-to-quash right-to-due-process trial-court Did the trial court violate Mr. Nieves-Perez's right to due process by denying his motion to quash the indictment?
21-6235 Brandon Marquis Jennings v. United States Fourth Circuit 2021-11-10 Denied Response WaivedIFP appellate-review due-process eighth-amendment life-sentence miller-v-alabama presumption-of-reasonableness reasonableness-standard sentencing sentencing-guidelines Whether the appellate review for reasonableness of a life sentence lacks sufficient scrutiny
20-1728 Rico Sanders v. Dylon Radtke, Warden Seventh Circuit 2021-06-14 Denied Response Waived criminal-procedure eighth-amendment juvenile-sentencing juvenile-status life-sentence mitigating-factor parole sentencing sentencing-guidelines Whether this Court's Eighth Amendment precedent clearly establishes that a sentencing court must consider a defendant's juvenile status as a mitigatin…
20-7851 Luis Noel Cruz, aka Noel v. United States Second Circuit 2021-04-26 Denied Response WaivedIFP 8th-amendment contemporary-standards-of-decency criminal-procedure due-process individualized-sentencing juvenile-sentencing legislative-trends life-sentence mandatory-minimum miller-rule sentencing-discretion Should the protections of Miller v. Alabama be extended to 18-year-olds?
20-7837 Sam Bradford v. Mississippi Mississippi 2021-04-23 Denied Response WaivedIFP criminal-procedure due-process life-sentence miss-code-ann-47-314 murder plain-error sentencing trial-court Whether Petitioner's (Sam Bradford) due process rights were violated when the trial court committed plain error in imposing a natural life sentence fo…
20-7581 Michael Hernandez v. Florida Florida 2021-03-26 Denied IFP constitutional-rights fact-finding first-amendment judicial-discretion juvenile-sentencing life-sentence mandatory-minimum sentencing-factors sixth-amendment trial-judge Whether Florida's juvenile sentencing statute violates the Sixth Amendment
20-1155 Jonas David Nelson v. Minnesota Minnesota 2021-02-23 Denied Amici (2)Response Waived cognitive-deficits cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment juvenile-offenders juvenile-sentencing life-sentence life-without-parole mental-illness proportionality proportionality-review Whether the Eighth Amendment right to narrow proportionality review of sentences of life without release entails a right to a hearing at which evidenc…
20-6116 Terry Joseph Wernicke, Jr. v. Court of Appeal of California, Third Appellate District, et al. California 2020-10-23 Denied Response WaivedIFP cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment felony-murder juvenile-offender life-sentence parole Whether the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment prohibits the imposition of a life sentence without the possibility of paro…
20-6023 Carlos Anderson v. Mark S. Inch, Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections Florida 2020-10-15 Denied Response WaivedIFP constitutional-review eighth-amendment graham-v-florida juvenile-sentencing life-sentence procedural-bar state-court-decisional-law state-court-law Can the Florida Supreme Court use state court decisional law to procedurally bar a non-homicide juvenile defendant from seeking relief from an illegal…
20-5542 Devin M. Kugler v. Illinois Illinois 2020-09-01 Denied Response WaivedIFP civil-commitment civil-rights constitutional-limitation due-process juvenile-adjudication life-sentence miller-v-alabama sentencing-precedent sexually-violent-person Whether this Court's decision in Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012), which prohibits life sentences for juveniles, prevents a court from civilly c…
19-8563 Michael Lee v. United States First Circuit 2020-05-29 Denied Response WaivedIFP appellate-procedure appellate-review criminal-law criminal-review due-process first-time-offender life-sentence sentencing sentencing-review sex-crimes Whether a circuit court is presented with a substantial question warranting full appellate review rather than summary disposition when a petitioner wi…
19-8551 Londro Emanuel Patterson, III v. Kansas Kansas 2020-05-28 Denied Response WaivedIFP constitutional-rights criminal-law cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment juvenile-justice juvenile-sentencing life-sentence parole sentencing Does a life sentence without parole for a 19-year-old violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment?
19-7799 Desmond Baker v. Florida Florida 2020-02-27 Denied IFP criminal-procedure eighth-amendment fourteenth-amendment juvenile-offender juvenile-offenders juvenile-sentencing life-sentence life-without-parole mandatory-sentencing parole sentencing-review Do the Eighth Amendment and Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibit mandatory sentencing laws which require sentencing every j…
19-7772 John Lee Barron v. Mark S. Inch, Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections, et al. Eleventh Circuit 2020-02-26 Denied IFP appellate-procedure certificate-of-appealability constitutional-claim constitutional-rights due-process federal-courts habeas-corpus ineffective-assistance-of-counsel judicial-review life-sentence Whether a Petitioner who is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole is denied due process
19-7594 Felix Lopez-Cabrera v. United States Second Circuit 2020-02-07 Denied Response WaivedIFP 8th-amendment age-of-culpability age-of-majority criminal-procedure cruel-and-unusual cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment juvenile-sentencing life-sentence life-sentences national-consensus neuroscience Whether Supreme Court jurisprudence finding mandatory life sentences for juveniles cruel and unusual under the Eight Amendment, and non-mandatory life…
19-7418 Jody Gifford v. Florida Florida 2020-01-27 Denied IFP constitutional-rights criminal-procedure cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment juvenile-offenders juvenile-sentencing life-sentence parole proportionality resentencing Whether the courts below decided an important federal question in a way that conflicts with the relevant decisions of this Honorable Court when they d…
19-6530 Vincent Williams v. United States Third Circuit 2019-11-06 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-924 18-usc-924c 18-usc-924j concurrent-sentence-doctrine criminal-procedure davis davis-ruling davis-v-united-states habeas-corpus life-sentence life-sentences post-conviction post-conviction-relief section-2255 third-circuit Whether the Third Circuit Court of Appeals erred in denying Vincent Williams' habeas corpus/post-conviction petition based on the Supreme Court's ruli…
19-6254 Christopher T. Shanahan v. Idaho Idaho 2019-10-11 Denied Response WaivedIFP 8th-amendment constitutional-law cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment equal-protection juvenile-sentencing life-sentence mitigating-factors parole parole-eligibility Does a juvenile life sentence with parole eligibility after a lengthy term violate the Eighth Amendment?
19-5762 Stevrick Tavah Jackson v. Florida Florida 2019-08-30 Denied IFP constitutional-rights criminal-procedure cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment habeas-corpus life-sentence parole sentencing twenty-one Whether the courts below decided an important federal question in a way that conflicts with the relevant decisions of this Honorable Court when they d…
19-5568 Keith D. Nelson v. United States Eighth Circuit 2019-08-13 Denied IFP brain-damage capital-sentencing certificate-of-appealability childhood-abuse childhood-sexual-abuse ineffective-assistance ineffective-assistance-of-counsel life-sentence mental-illness mitigating-evidence prejudice-analysis strickland-prejudice strickland-prejudice-standard strickland-standard Does it violate the Strickland prejudice standard to conclude that never before presented evidence of brain damage, severe mental illness, and childho…
19-5230 Stephen B. Wlodarz v. Shawn Phillips, Warden Tennessee 2019-07-18 Denied Response WaivedIFP alford-plea criminal-procedure due-process life-sentence parole plea-bargaining sentencing Whether Petitioner's Alford guilty plea resulting in a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole is legal?
19-5002 Jared Len Cruse v. Texas Texas 2019-06-28 Denied IFP 14th-amendment 4th-amendment cell-phone-evidence conflict-of-interest constitutional-rights due-process habeas-corpus ineffective-assistance ineffective-assistance-of-counsel life-sentence search-and-seizure warrantless-search Whether the cell phone evidence was the product of a warrantless search and seizure and/or an illegal detention; and thus, whether this evidence can b…
18-1572 Matthew D. Priset v. Pennsylvania Third Circuit 2019-06-25 Denied Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2) 8th-amendment constitutional-law criminal-sentencing cruel-and-unusual-punishment cruel-unusual-punishment due-process eighth-amendment life-sentence mandatory-minimum mandatory-minimum-sentence mental-illness sentencing Does a mandatory minimum life sentence for one convicted under the guilty-but-mentally-ill designation constitute cruel and unusual punishment?
18-9626 In Re Rexford Tweed 2019-06-11 Dismissed IFP capital-punishment constitutional-violation due-process due-process,eighth-amendment,florida-constitution, eighth-amendment habeas-corpus indefinite-sentence life-sentence minimum-mandatory parole parole-eligibility sentencing-statute Whether petitioner's Florida capital life prison sentence with a 25-year minimum mandatory followed by eligibility for parole under Florida Statute §7…
18-9568 Roderick Mullins v. Florida Florida 2019-06-07 Denied Response WaivedIFP 14th-amendment civil-rights criminal-sentencing cruel-and-unusual-punishment due-process imprisonment indefinite-imprisonment life-imprisonment life-sentence sentencing sentencing-scheme state-constitution Does the Florida 'Life Means Life' sentence scheme violate the State Constitution's ban on indefinite imprisonment and the 14th Amendment Due Process …
18-9154 Jeffrey William Smith v. Harold W. Clarke, Director, Virginia Department of Corrections Fourth Circuit 2019-05-07 Denied Response WaivedIFP civil-procedure-criminal constitutional-rights criminal-case criminal-procedure due-process judicial-discretion jury-instructions life-imprisonment life-sentence mitigating-factors sentencing sentencing-guidelines separation-of-powers statutory-interpretation Whether the circuit court erred in failing to correct a defective jury instruction
18A1001 Freddy Brown v. Florida Florida 2019-04-01 Presumed Complete eighth-amendment juvenile-sentencing life-sentence miller-v-alabama mitigating-factors proportionality Whether the Eighth Amendment prohibits a life sentence for a juvenile offender without consideration of the defendant's age and developmental characte…
18A1003 Gary Reid v. Florida Florida 2019-04-01 Presumed Complete cruel-and-unusual eighth-amendment juvenile-sentencing life-sentence miller-v-alabama proportionality Whether the Eighth Amendment prohibits a life sentence for a juvenile offender without meaningful consideration of the defendant's age and development…
18-8346 Danilo Velasquez v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-03-08 Denied Response WaivedIFP appeal constitutional-rights criminal-procedure diminished-capacity due-process evidence expert-testimony fundamental-rights life-sentence ninth-circuit sentencing Did the Ninth Circuit fail to protect petitioner's fundamental due process right to present his complete defense?
18-7518 Kevin Holt v. J.A. Terris, Warden Sixth Circuit 2019-01-22 Denied Response WaivedIFP 28-cfr-chapter-1-2-61 federal-bureau-of-prisons federal-judicial-system first-impression good-time-credits life-sentence military-prisoner military-prisoners military-prisoners-life-sentence presumptive-release sentencing-reduction statutory-interpretation title-18-usc-4206 title-18-usc-4206a Should the Supreme Court of the United States hear this case that presents a substantial issue of 'first impression in the Federal Judicial System tha…
18-7065 Fabio Porfirio Lobo v. United States Second Circuit 2018-12-17 Denied Response WaivedRelisted (2)IFP constitutional-law constitutional-rights criminal-procedure district-court due-process inaccurate-information judicial-discretion life-sentence sentencing Whether Petitioner's due process rights were violated when the United States District Court relied on inaccurate information sentencing him to a defac…
18-6554 Walter Collins v. Tennessee Tennessee 2018-11-02 Denied Response WaivedIFP constitutional-rights cruel-and-unusual-punishment eighth-amendment fourteenth-amendment juvenile-sentencing life-sentence mandatory-life-sentence opportunity-for-release reasonable-opportunity-for-release Whether a mandatory life sentence for a crime committed by a juvenile that does not allow him a reasonable opportunity for release violates the prohib…
18-6519 Mariano Alvarez v. United States Fifth Circuit 2018-10-31 Denied Response WaivedIFP certificate-of-appealability criminal-procedure ineffective-assistance ineffective-assistance-of-counsel judicial-discretion life-sentence mistrial plea-bargaining plea-negotiation recusal sentencing-guidelines Can doubts in granting a Certificate of Appealability (COA) be resolved in favor of the appellant when considering the severity of his life sentence?
18-6185 Jason Beckman v. Florida Florida 2018-10-02 Denied Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2)IFP apprendi apprendi-v-new-jersey criminal-procedure due-process fact-finding factfinding jury-factfinding juvenile-sentencing life-sentence miller-factors miller-v-alabama sentencing-factors sixth-amendment Whether section 921.1401, Florida Statutes, violates the Sixth Amendment by allowing a judge rather than a jury to conduct the factfinding necessary t…
18-6119 Gary Long, Jr. v. United States Eighth Circuit 2018-09-27 Denied Response WaivedIFP circuit-split criminal-sentencing de-facto-life-sentence due-process eighth-amendment federal-court-split federal-courts life-sentence sentencing-analysis sentencing-guidelines supreme-court-precedent term-of-years Whether the district and appellate court failed to conduct the proper analysis of imposing a de facto life sentence on the petitioner?
18-6000 Angel Barreiro v. Julie L. Jones, Secretary, Florida Department of Corrections Florida 2018-09-14 Denied Response WaivedIFP civil-rights constitutional-rights de-facto-life-sentence due-process equal-protection florida-supreme-court life-sentence parole parole-eligibility parole-process sentencing statutory-interpretation statutory-scheme Whether all 4,626 pre-1994 parole eligible Inmates in the State of Florida should also benefit from the Florida Supreme Court's ruling in Atwell v. St…
18-5854 Joe Leonard Lambright v. Arizona Arizona 2018-08-31 Denied Response WaivedIFP criminal-procedure double-jeopardy due-process incarceration-credit life-sentence parole sentencing statutory-interpretation When a defendant's death sentence is vacated and a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 25 years imposed in its place, is the Due Proces…
18-5764 Richard Joseph Crane v. Ralph Diaz, Acting Secretary, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Ninth Circuit 2018-08-24 Denied IFP civil-rights constitutional-interpretation criminal-sentencing cruel-and-unusual-punishment due-process ex-post-facto habeas-corpus life-sentence parole parole-consideration sentencing supreme-court-precedent Whether the Supreme Court intended for the opinion of California Department of Corrections v. Morales (1995) and Garner v. Jones (2000) to apply to in…
18-5116 Benjamin A. Gibbs v. United States Fourth Circuit 2018-07-05 Denied Response WaivedIFP civil-procedure due-process jurisdiction life-sentence murder patent retroactive-application sentencing-guidelines standing takings uncharge-offense Whether the petitioner's life sentence for an uncharged offense of murder violates due process, retroactive application of law, and sentencing guideli…