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the state prison system who are serving mandatory life sentences for murders they committed when they were younger than 18, Attorney General Marty Jackley announced Thursday. • A U.S. Supreme Court decision last month said mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juvenile homicide offenders violates the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. The decision's impact on the South Dakota cases is unclear. • More than 2,000 people are in U.S. prisons under such a sentence. Some might win immediate release, while others still could be kept locked up for life. Judges also could impose new sentences carrying a specific number of years and a parole review. • The three South Dakota inmates serving mandatory life sentences for murders committed when they were under 18 are Paul D. Jensen, Daniel N. Charles and Jessi Owens. • The Supreme Court decision "may not impact the mandatory life sentences imposed on Jensen, Charles and Owens," Jackley said in a news release. "Courts must determine if the decision retroactively applies to juveniles previously sentenced to life imprisonment." • If the courts determine it can be applied retroactively, a separate sentencing will be required, he said. • Jensen was 14 years old when a jury convicted him of first-degree murder for the death of Michael Hare in 1996. Hare, a cab driver from Pierre, was kidnapped, robbed and killed for his fare, which totaled $36.48. Jensen also received a life sentence for the kidnapping. • Charles was 14 when a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder for fatally shooting his stepfather, Duane Ingalls, in the head with a rifle in 1999.
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