Century-Long Sentence Upheld for Illinois ‘Emerging Adult’

A century-long prison term doesn’t qualify as a de facto life sentence for a man who’s eligible for possible release under Illinois’ “youth parole” law, the State Supreme Court found in a unanimous opinion released Thursday.

The court upheld the 100-year sentence of Eugene Spencer, who’s serving time for a murder that occurred when he was 20.

But Spencer is free to challenge the sentence in postconviction proceedings as an alleged violation of the state constitution’s proportionate-penalties clause, Justice P. Scott Neville Jr. wrote in the opinion.

The high court “has not barred young adult defendants from raising as-applied ...