Youthful offender sentencing bill would provide hope to hundreds of inmates serving lengthy terms

SPRINGFIELD — Christopher Carter was 20 when he took part in the murder, armed robbery and kidnapping of a man whose body he helped dispose of on Chicago’s West Side in March 2001.He was the youngest of three suspects charged in the crime. He argued that his role was comparatively limited, and court records suggest that he didn’t commit the actual killing, but at trial he testified that he participated in the crime because he was afraid of the two older men. All three were convicted, and Carter was sentenced to 100 years in prison.More than 20 years into his incarceration, criminal justice reform advocates say Carter is among roughly 1,200 people in prison in Illinois who, under legislation being considered in Springfield, could be eligible for resentencing by a judge who takes into consideration their age and maturity level at the time the crimes were committed.The proposal would apply to people in prison for crimes they committed when they were under 21. It marks one of the latest ef...