Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
DETROIT (AP) — A Detroit-area drug dealer nicknamed "White Boy Rick," who has been in prison for 28 years for crimes when he was a teen, is making another effort to get his sentence reduced.
The Detroit News reports (http://detne.ws/2gSXSdJ ) a lawyer for Richard Wershe (WER'-she) filed a petition Tuesday in U.S. District Court asking the court to reverse state court orders and send his case for immediate resentencing.
The 47-year-old Wershe is serving a life sentence with occasional opportunities for parole. Michigan's parole board so far has declined to release him.
The petition says the no-parole sentence violates Eighth Amendment prohibitions on cruel and unusual punishment as well as Michigan's constitution. It says parole proceedings haven't considered Wershe's "youthfulness at the time of his offense or his demonstrated rehabilitation, growth and maturity."
___
Information from: The Detroit News, http://detnews.com/
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.