Does Age Matter? Experiences of Prison and Release Among Juvenile Lifers

More individuals than ever before are currently serving long-term sentences. Many of them have been incarcerated as juveniles. Little is known, however, how imprisonment influences these individuals, and how they fare upon release.

To assess the dynamics of age during incarceration and upon release, life-history interviews with second-degree lifers were conducted. Those who were incarcerated as juveniles were compared to those who were adults at the time of incarceration.

Three hypotheses are discussed in relation to this special group: Long-term imprisonment as a ‘deep-freeze’, prison as a school of crime, and prison as a place of cognitive transformation. The influence of long-term imprisonment is examined with a view toward greater understanding of subsequent desistance post-release.