This study will research public perceptions of life without parole (LWOP) for juvenile offenders by gauging levels of support for juvenile LWOP adult LWOP. It will also focus on if there is a certain age that the public feels are appropriate to sentence a juvenile to LWOP. A nationally representative sample of adult and youth will be used to gauge opinions using a randomized controlled vignette study design to measure support or lack thereof for juvenile LWOP. Results will identify how much the public supports LWOP for adult and juvenile offenders, as well as the youngest age person can be before receiving and LWOP sentence. Furthermore, the results will indicate if individuals believe these specific factors are enough to eliminate juvenile LWOP.

This report explores the United States’ continued use of the death penalty and the various costs of maintaining such a policy. This paper aims to investigate issues in the continued use of the death penalty and potential policy alternatives to this inhumane practice. To this end, topics such as constitutional law, crime control, and economic costs associated with the death penalty will be explored. Ultimately, due to patterns of racial and economic discrimination, a lack of evidence for a deterrent effect, the risk imposed on innocent defendants, and the economic cost of maintaining the status quo, it is suggested that the United States, at the very least places a federal moratorium on executions, while simultaneously encouraging states to do the same through the use of grants or mandates designed to lessen the cost of swapping to a life without parole or LWOP system could create on a state’s budget. Additionally, alternatives such as LWOP are explored as a means to address many of the concerns surrounding the death penalty.