Also known as: life imprisonment · perpetual imprisonment
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A sentence of imprisonment lasting for the remainder of the offender's natural life.
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Catherine Carter, age seventeen, set a fire at a warehouse that caused severe burns to several workers but no deaths. After her conviction for arson, the court considered imposing cadena perpetua. Because she was a juvenile and the offense involved no homicide, the sentence could not stand.
Craig Caldwell passed a bad check for a small amount after prior nonviolent convictions. The court imposed cadena perpetua under a recidivist statute. The sentence was found disproportionate under the Eighth Amendment given the minor nature of the triggering offense.
Carlos Castillo received cadena perpetua after conviction for a non-capital offense carrying a life term. Statistical evidence showed racial disparities in sentencing. The court examined whether the sentence reflected unconstitutional racial bias.
Chloe Chen was convicted of murder and sentenced to cadena perpetua. The prosecution's improper comments were reviewed to determine whether they were harmless beyond a reasonable doubt in the sentencing decision.
Clifford Cox was charged with murder carrying a potential sentence of cadena perpetua. The prosecution bore the burden of proving malice beyond a reasonable doubt rather than requiring the defendant to disprove it.
Cade Carpenter faced an enhanced sentence of cadena perpetua based on a factual finding that a hate crime motive existed. The jury was required to find that enhancer beyond a reasonable doubt before the court could impose the term.
It refers to a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of release.
The Eighth Amendment prohibits it for non-homicide offenses committed by offenders under eighteen.
Such a sentence may violate the Eighth Amendment if grossly disproportionate to the crime.
No. The categorical bar applies only to the death penalty, though the impairment remains relevant for mitigation.
…of death is qualitatively different from a sentence of imprisonment, however long. Death, in its finality, differs more from life imprisonment than a 100-year prison term differs from one of only a year or two. Because of that qualitative difference, there is a corresponding difference in the need for reliability in the…