Life But Chance For Parole In Detroit Killing

DETROIT (AP) - A Michigan judge has sentenced a Detroit man to life in prison for first-degree murder in one of the first cases since the U.S. Supreme Court said mandatory no-parole punishments are unconstitutional for killings committed under age 18.

Wayne County Judge Ulysses Boykin acknowledged Wednesday that Taywon Williams might get a hearing from the state parole board someday, something that wouldn't have happened before the Supreme Court's June 25 decision. But the sentence still is life in prison.

The 18-year-old Williams was 17 last year when a Beckley, W.Va., man was bound with tape and shot during a drug deal. Williams didn't kill William Abrams, but authorities say he participated by tying the victim and another man.

Michigan was one of 28 states that had mandatory no-parole sentences for juveniles.

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