The Washington Supreme Court will hear oral argument in a case challenging the constitutionality of the state law that mandates that certain 16- and 17-year-olds be tried as adults without consideration of their age, culpability, or amenability to rehabilitation.
These arguments come on the heels of a decade of opinions from the U.S. Supreme Court dramatically recasting the meaning of the 8th Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment as applied to juveniles, in line with recent developments in neuroscience and social psychology.
The case has drawn national attention, including the participation of amici from leading juvenile advocacy organizations.
Professor Paul Holland will host a live stream of the argument in the Dore Courtroom. The arguments are scheduled to begin at 1:30.
Interested students, faculty, and staff are invited to meet in the Courtroom at 1:00 for introductory remarks providing some context for the arguments.
Background material on the case can be found on a TWEN site titled “WSC Oral Argument October 18.”
