## Facts

- Brett Jones, age 15, killed his grandfather by stabbing him in Mississippi.
- A jury convicted Jones of murder.
- Under then-existing Mississippi law, the trial court imposed a mandatory sentence of life without parole (LWOP), and the sentence was affirmed on direct appeal.
- After *Miller v. Alabama* invalidated mandatory juvenile LWOP, Mississippi courts ordered Jones resentenced under a discretionary framework.
- At resentencing, the judge stated he had discretion to impose a lesser sentence, considered youth-related circumstances, and again imposed LWOP.
- The Mississippi Court of Appeals affirmed, rejecting Jones’s claim that *Miller* and *Montgomery v. Louisiana* required a finding that he was “permanently incorrigible” before imposing juvenile LWOP.

## Issues

1. Whether the Eighth Amendment requires a sentencer to make a specific finding that a juvenile homicide offender is “permanently incorrigible” before imposing LWOP.
2. Whether it is constitutionally sufficient that the sentencer has discretion to impose a lesser sentence and considers youth as a mitigating factor.

## Decision

- The Supreme Court affirmed in a 6–3 decision.
- The Court held that *Miller* and *Montgomery* do not require a separate factual finding of permanent incorrigibility before imposing juvenile LWOP.
- The Court held that a discretionary sentencing system that allows consideration of the offender’s youth is constitutionally necessary and constitutionally sufficient under the Eighth Amendment.
- Because the resentencing judge had and acknowledged discretion, held a hearing, and considered youth-related factors, the LWOP sentence was not unconstitutional despite the lack of an incorrigibility finding.

## Legal Principles

- For juvenile homicide offenders, the Eighth Amendment requires that LWOP not be mandatory and that the sentencer be able to consider youth and attendant characteristics before imposing LWOP.
- The Eighth Amendment does not require:
  - an explicit on-the-record finding of “permanent incorrigibility,”
  - any particular wording or form of explanation, or
  - a constitutionally mandated presumption against juvenile LWOP.
- States may adopt additional protections as a matter of state law or policy (including barring juvenile LWOP or requiring special findings), but the federal Constitution does not compel them.

## Conclusion

The Court held that juvenile LWOP for homicide is constitutional when imposed under a discretionary scheme that permits consideration of youth; the Eighth Amendment does not require a separate finding that the juvenile is permanently incorrigible.


Jones v. Mississippi, 593 U.S. 98 (2021)