'A Living Death': Thousands Serving Life in Prison for Nonviolent Offenses

At least 3,278 people in the United States, a majority of them black, are serving life in prison for nonviolent convictions in a system where mandatory minimum laws and racial disparities shape sentencing, a report released Wednesday by the ACLU reveals.

Entitled , the study draws on interviews and surveys of hundreds of inmates, as well as court records and data from the state obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, to paint a chilling picture of lives behind bars.

What are these offenses?

They could be as little as stealing a $159 jacket or selling $10 worth of marijuana, the report finds. Of the 3,278 cases reviewed for the study, 79% were convicted of nonviolent, drug-related crimes and 20% of nonviolent property crimes like theft. Most were handed mandatory minimums under “habitual offender” laws that require them to spend the rest of their lives behind bars.

Severe racial disparities are reflected in these numbers. Of cases reviewed, 65 percent are black, 18 percent are white, and 16 percent are latino. In Louisiana, a stunning 91 percent of inmates serving life for a nonviolent offense are black.

This is despite evidence that white people are just as likely, if not more likely, than black people to use drugs.