A judge has cleared the way for the release of a 74-year-old man who is the oldest Michigan prisoner serving a life sentence for murder as a teen.
Sheldry Topp has been in prison since 1962. But he was resentenced Tuesday to a minimum of 40 years. Attorney Deborah LaBelle says the new sentence means Topp should immediately be eligible for freedom.
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Michigan and other states were forced to change the way they sentence teens after the U.S. Supreme Court said minors can’t automatically be given life prison terms. No-parole sentences still are possible. That’s what prosecutor Jessica Cooper wanted for Topp.
But Oakland County Judge James Alexander says Topp has been rehabilitated.
Topp was convicted of fatally stabbing a man during a robbery. He was 17 at the time of the death.