Juveniles who kill can be locked away for the rest of their lives without violating their constitutional rights, the state Court of Appeals ruled Friday.
In a unanimous decision, the judges refused to overturn the conviction and sentence of Zachary Samuel Eggers, convicted of the 2003 premeditated murders of his parents at the family home near Double Adobe, north of Douglas.
The court acknowledged Eggers was 16 at the time. And the judges pointed out the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that "the susceptibility of juveniles to immature and irresponsible behavior" means they have "insufficient culpability" to be executed for crimes for which adults would be executed.
"However, it does not necessarily follow that this lesser culpability also means juveniles cannot be classified among those offenders deserving of natural-life sentences," wrote Judge Garye Vásquez.
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The appellate court also rejected Eggers' contention that the 1996 voter-approved law requiring juveniles accused of murder to be tried as adults is unconstitutional. Vásquez said Eggers had no legal right to be tried in Juvenile Court.
Eggers was convicted of ambushing his parents at their home, using a shotgun to kill his mother, Delyn, and then putting two blasts into his father, Bradley Sr. He buried the pair in a shallow grave beside the home.
"This is undoubtedly a severe sentence for a juvenile," the judge wrote. "But first-degree murder is an equally serious crime."
Vásquez said the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits only sentences that are "grossly disproportionate" to the crime committed. But it does not bar severe sentences.
"We cannot say that a natural-life sentence is grossly disproportionate to the crime of first-degree murder, even when committed by a juvenile," Vásquez said.
