Bass, Berry & Sims attorney David Esquivel spoke to WPLN-Nashville Public Radio about a case before the Tennessee Supreme Court challenging the state’s mandatory juvenile sentencing law. Bass, Berry & Sims attorneys have joined with other state and national organizations and two juveniles currently serving life sentences to challenge the constitutionality of Tennessee’s law amid recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings.
The case currently before the Tennessee Supreme Court involves Tyshon Booker who was convicted in 2018 of felony murder based on a shooting in an alleged robbery-gone-wrong when he was 16 years old. “His story is typical of the 200 or so juveniles — children, really — who have been convicted of crimes and, because of this sentencing statute, have no opportunity to rehabilitate,” David told WPLN. “The thing that they did when they were children, or at least the thing that they were convicted of, came at a time when they had the possibility of changing. And the law doesn’t allow for that.”
The full article, “Tennessee Supreme Court Considering Whether To End Strict Life Sentences For Juveniles,” was published by WPLN-Nashville Public Radio on February 23 and is available online. To read more about the firm’s involvement in the case, click here.