Today, Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a significant legal victory in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. The court sided with the Florida Commission on Offender Review (FCOR) in a case brought by inmates serving life-with-parole sentences for crimes committed as juveniles.
Attorney General Uthmeier stated, “This ruling affirms what we’ve said all along—Florida’s parole system is constitutional and fair. These were serious, violent crimes with devastating consequences, and our laws must continue to reflect the gravity of those acts.” He expressed gratitude to Acting Solicitor General Jeffrey DeSousa and Senior Deputy Solicitor General Christopher Baum for their efforts in defending the rule of law and protecting victims’ rights.
The plaintiffs, known as “juvenile lifers,” filed a class action lawsuit claiming Florida’s parole system violated the Eighth Amendment by not providing a “meaningful opportunity for release.” Most of these plaintiffs were sentenced for homicide offenses. The U.S. District Court had previously ruled in favor of FCOR, a decision now upheld by the Eleventh Circuit, with the opinion authored by the Honorable Kevin C. Newsom.
The court concluded that, on a class-wide basis, Florida’s parole process does not violate either the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment or the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process guarantee. While the court acknowledged that the parole system could be “a little stingy” in granting release, it found no constitutional violations.
This ruling supports the state’s right to uphold a parole system that considers rehabilitation opportunities while ensuring public safety and accountability.
