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Life without Parole

The term “life without parole,” sometimes called “LWOP” or “natural life,” refers to a sentence of confinement in state or federal prison that lasts for the duration of an offender's life. A sentence of life without parole is generally given in instances of particularly serious crimes or in cases where the offender has a history of serious criminal activity. As opposed to other possible criminal sanctions, the primary goal of a sentence of life without parole is complete incapacitation.

Time

While the concept of life without parole suggests that the offender will spend the rest of his or her life in prison, each jurisdiction implements this sentence in different ways (see Table 1). In some places, “life without parole” means that a certain number of years, as few as 10 years in Idaho and Montana or as many as 55 years in Indiana, must be served before the offender can be eligible for parole. In Oklahoma, those sentenced to life without parole are, in fact, eligible for parole after serving 45 years. In response, in 1994, an Oklahoma judge sentenced a convicted child molester with 14 prior felony convictions to six consecutive 5,000-year sentences in an effort to ensure that he would spend the rest of his life in prison.

Elsewhere, the term “life without parole” literally means that the individual will never be eligible for parole; he or she will die in prison. In some states (e.g., South Carolina and Vermont), the governor can commute a sentence of life without parole, while elsewhere (e.g., Alabama) the governor is prohibited from such action. In some jurisdictions, “life without parole” is the default sentence in capital cases where a guilty verdict is reached but the jury cannot reach a unanimous decision as to a sentence of death (see Table 1).

Population Characteristics

The vast majority of inmates serving life without parole are male (about 95%). However, in recent years, partly as a response to the so-called war on drugs and to “three strikes” laws that have been enacted at state and federal levels, the proportion of female inmates has been increasing. Overall, as with the general prison population, disproportionate numbers of men and women of color are serving this lengthy prison term.

Approximately 1.2% of all prisoners are doing life without parole, and it is thought that this proportion will grow substantially over the next two decades. For example, a recent Bureau of Justice Statistics analysis projects that by the year 2026, there will be approximately 30,000 persons serving sentences of 25 years to life in the state of California alone. Furthermore, about 83% of these (24,900 inmates in California) will be 40 years of age or older. Other estimates hold that as a result of sentencing changes in the 1980s and 1990s, over 10% of the prison population nationally will be over the age of 50 in coming years.

Views for and Against

Generally, opponents of the death penalty are the strongest supporters of life without parole since they believe it is more cost effective (with primary savings in reduction of mandatory appeals) and allows possible errors to be corrected. Advocates also cite Gallup polls that indicate that national support for the death penalty drops when life without parole is given as an option to respondents. Opponents, however, argue that the growing numbers of sentences to life without parole is cause for concern. Research indicates that by the time people are imprisoned for a third strike or other repeat-offender statutes with a possible sentence of life without parole, they may be nearing the end of their criminal career. As such, the costs of long-term imprisonment may not outweigh the public benefits of reduced crime, since offenders are not likely to commit much crime in later years. Likewise, prison research documents that long-term prisoners are about half as likely to be involved in disciplinary actions as the general prison population lends further support to the “aging out” phenomenon in which deviant behavior declines with increasing age.

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