Back-to-back life sentences

Uncommon card · No. 145672

In judicial practice, back-to-back life sentences, also called consecutive life sentences, are two or more consecutive life sentences given to a convicted felon. This practice is used to ensure the felon will never be released from prison. This is a common punishment for a defendant convicted of multiple murders in the United States. Depending on the jurisdiction in which the case is tried, a defendant receiving a life sentence may become eligible for parole after serving a minimum length of time, on the order of 15–25 years. If a back-to-back penalty is imposed, the defendant must serve that minimum for every life sentence before parole can be granted, resulting in effect in a life-without-parole sentence, given the defendant's reasonably expected lifespan. Such a penalty also ensures that even if any of the convictions are overturned on appeal, the defendant must still serve the sentences for the ones left standing without the need for a retrial (as would presumably be the case if a single...

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