(AREA) — The Michigan appeals court has assigned a special group of judges to settle conflicting opinions on a major issue: Should juries have the power to sentence teens convicted of first-degree murder? A three-judge panel at the court broke new ground last year when it said juries – not trial judges – must decide whether someone under 18 gets a no-parole sentence. The case involved a former Yale woman who was convicted of plotting a fatal attack on her father, Paul Skinner, back in November 2010 in St. Clair County. Tia Skinner was 17-years old when she was convicted of first-degree murder by a St. Clair County jury and sentenced to life in prison by a judge in 2011. She was issued the same sentence at age 20 after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down mandatory no-parole punishments for teenagers. That decision set a key precedent. A different set of judges on the appeals court firmly disagreed in January, but had to apply it in a Flint murder case. In a rare step, a seven-judge panel at the court will settle the dispute. Arguments haven’t been scheduled yet.
