Pa. man given life as a teen to be resentenced

EASTON, Pa. (AP) — Attorneys for a Pennsylvania man who was a 14-year-old gang member when he shot and killed another teenager in 2006 are due in court today to argue their client deserves a chance at freedom someday.

The state Supreme Court ordered a resentencing hearing for Qu’eed Batts after a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ban on mandatory life sentences without parole for juveniles.

Judges and juries must now take into account a defendant’s age, the nature of the crime and other evidence in imposing such a sentence.

Defense attorneys complained today in Northampton County court that prison officials had failed to turn over records purporting to show that Batts has maintained gang ties while behind bars, but the judge rejected a bid to either exclude the evidence or postpone the hearing.