In every state that retains the death penalty, jurors have the
option of sentencing convicted capital murderers to life in prison
without the possibility of parole. The sentence is cheaper to
tax-payers and keeps violent offenders off the streets for good. Unlike the death penalty, a sentence of
Life Without Parole also allows mistakes to be corrected.
There are currently over 3,300
people in California who have received this alternative sentence, which also has a more limited appeals process.
According to the California Governor's Office, only seven people
sentenced to life without parole have been released since the state
provided for this option in 1977, and this occurred because they were
able to prove their innocence.
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