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As Republican state Sen. Janice Bowling explained to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, a person in Tennessee who is convicted of first-degree murder faces three possible sentences: life with the possibility of parole, life without the possibility of parole or death. But because of an extraordinarily harsh sentencing law, a person sentenced to life with the possibility of parole is not eligible to even be considered for release until they have served 51 years in prison.
That's double the national average, Bowling told the committee, and means most people facing the sentence will die before they ever get a chance at parole.