House Bill 1192

Background: House Bill 1192 would allow the parole of certain inmates sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.

Our Stance: The ACLU of South Dakota supports House Bill 1192.

Through the length of a sentence, there is a lot of time in which people can be helped to change and improve, then assessed to see whether they have progressed to a point where they can safely participate in society. The goal of incarceration should be rehabilitation. By eliminating the possibility of parole for whole swaths of incarcerated people, there is no motivation for self-evaluation and genuine desire for change.