Juvenile Killers

A hot topic in York, PA is the sentencing of juvenile killers.

Recent cases involve Zachary Witman who was 15 when he stabbed his 13-year-old brother to death outside their home in 2003.  Witman was sentenced to life in prison.

Another local case involves Jordan Wallick, 17 who gunned down James Wallmuth II in York city two years ago.  Wallick was sentenced to life in prison.

The talk is: should juvenile killers get life sentences with no chance of parole.

Should the actions of a teenagers be held against them for the rest of their lives?

I’ve become pen pals with a prisoner who shot someone when he was 16.  In 1986 Corey Hollinger shot a man during a home invasion and has been paying for his crime ever since.  I’ve never met Corey but did research about him and his brother’s case in college.  Writing to Corey on a whim really opened my eyes.  He isn’t anything like the stereotypical life sentence prisoner.  It seems to me (and many others) that two lives have been wasted.  The man who died and the man who will spend his life in prison for being an idiot at 16.

Two more lives wasted….the Witman brothers.  One is dead and the other will die in prison for snapping on his little brother.  If only there were a rewind button.  I don’t think any of these three juvenile killers really meant to take a life.  Even Wallick most likely didn’t have intentions of shooting Wallmuth.

Six ruined lives.

Pennsylvania is re-evaluating the “life in prison with no chance of parole sentence to juvenile.”  What will happen to those who were sentenced years ago before this was determined to be unconstitutional?  Each case will have to be evaluated individually and there are 2500 prisoners in Pennsylvania sentenced to life without parole.

Corey and Zach should be at the top of the list.

~P.