Court: Branch too young for "life without parole'

Cole County's circuit court must re-sentence William L. Branch, because its 2000 sentence of life in prison without the possibility of probation or parole was ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2012, a three-judge appeals court panel ruled Tuesday.

"We are reviewing the ruling," said Nanci Gonder, spokeswoman for Attorney General Chris Koster.

The state could ask the appeals court to transfer the case to the Supreme Court.

Branch was 17 on March 4, 1999, when he and Terry A. Campbell, then 18, robbed the Gas-Plus station, 501 E. McCarty St., as attendant Michael A. Alfaro, 34, was closing the business for the night.

Investigators at the time said Branch fired the shot that killed Alfaro, then took money from the gas station and from Alfaro's wallet.

The robbery netted less than $200.

Branch was charged with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery, while Campbell was charged with second-degree murder and first-degree robbery.

Branch pleaded guilty to both charges on Feb. 10, 2000, and Circuit Judge Thomas J. Brown III sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of probation or parole for the murder conviction, and a life sentence with a parole possibility for the robbery conviction, to be served at the same time.

Campbell pleaded guilty to the charges on March 14, 2000, and Circuit Judge Pat Joyce sentenced him to life in prison (with a parole possibility) for the murder, to be followed by a 30-year sentence for the robbery conviction.

Corrections Department online records showed Tuesday that both Branch and Campbell currently are being held at the Jefferson City Correctional Center.

Branch, through the state Public Defender's office in Columbia, filed a habeas corpus complaint that he should not have been given the no-parole life sentence, even though it was required by the state law in effect at the time.

In a 16-page opinion, Judge Mark D. Pfeiffer offered a detailed study of the effects of two U.S. Supreme Court's 2012 rulings, often referred to as "Miller/Jackson."

Both cases held the U.S. Constitution's Eighth Amendment forbids a sentencing scheme that mandates life in prison without possibility of parole for juvenile offenders when an "offender's youth and attendant characteristics" have not been considered, Pfeiffer wrote.

Still, Pfeiffer added, there have been a number of court opinions around the country about when such a change in legal thought must be applied to cases already decided - such as Branch's sentencing a dozen years before the Miller/Jackson ruling.

And, he noted, courts have not decided if the Miller/Jackson decisions require all past cases to be overturned.

Still, the appeals court decided, "When the trial court imposed a mandatory sentence of (life without parole) to Branch, the trial court's sentence is one of substantive unconstitutionality, not a mere procedural error having constitutional implications.

"In sentencing Branch to mandatory (life without parole) when the sentencer was not given an opportunity to consider mitigating evidence, the trial court imposed a sentence in excess of that permitted by law."