USA - California. Bill to change laws for juvenile offenders serving life-without-parole sentences fails in state Assembly.

Bill to change laws for juvenile offenders serving life-without-parole sentences fails in state Assembly. Senate Bill 9 that would have allowed juvenile offenders sentenced to life without parole the chance to pursue freedom after a quarter-century in prison narrowly failed to pass the state Assembly. The bill by state Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, was backed by human rights advocates and child psychiatrists. It was approved by the full Senate and supported by all but a handful of key Assembly Democrats. In a dramatic twist, although Yee counted 40 votes late in the day -- 1 shy of passage -- his failure to convince enough Democrats ultimately doomed the bill in a 36-36 vote, with 8 members abstaining when the final roll was called. His bill would allow those who committed crimes at age 17 or younger to petition the court for a "resentencing" hearing. Judges could then reduce life-without-parole sentences to 25 years to life, with the possibility of appealing to parole boards. There are 295 juvenile offenders serving life without parole sentences in California.