While significant public and scholarly attention rightly dwells on capital punishment, comparatively under-explored is a steady surge of life sentences without the possibility of parole ("LWOP"). While the Furman Court's "death is different" doctrine retains obvious salience and moral force, it should not obscure LWOPs from much-needed empirical inquiry.
To this end, in a recent paper, Life 'With' or 'Without'?: An Empirical Study of Homicide Sentencing, forthcoming in JELS, Michael O'Hear (Marquette) and Darren Wheelock (Marquette--Dept. Social and Cultural Sciences) do just that. While the paper's data set is limited to Wisconsin homicides, the authors do a deep data dive into 450 individuals convicted of first-degree intentional homicide between the start of 2001 and about mid-2018. The core findings are mixed. On the one hand, "intentional-homicide defendants who have more serious criminal histories are more likely to receive LWOP." On the other hand, "sentencing outcomes are influenced by the identity of the judge and prosecutor." The paper's abstract follows.
"The number of Americans serving sentences of life without the possibility of parole (“LWOP”) has grown rapidly over the past generation and now exceeds 50,000. Yet, little empirical research has been conducted on the determinants of LWOP sentences. The dearth of research on LWOP sentencing stands in sharp contrast to the many dozens of studies that have been conducted on the determinants of death sentences—studies that have consistently found that race, gender, and other questionable factors may influence sentencing outcomes. The present study is the first to employ a similar methodology to identify both case- and county-level variables that are correlated with the imposition of discretionary LWOP sentences.
More specifically, we have assessed the relationship between fifty different variables and LWOP decisions in 450 homicide cases in Wisconsin between 2001 and 2018. In our final model, we find seven variables that are correlated with sentencing outcomes. Of particular note, we find that judge and prosecutor personal characteristics are statistically significant correlates of LWOP decisions. We also find a significantly greater likelihood that LWOP sentences will be imposed in counties that are more Republican. We conclude with a proposal for a new LWOP sentencing process that may help to ensure that this very severe sentence is reserved for the most serious crimes committed by the most dangerous defendants."
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