COLORADO, USA — Curtis Brooks, now 39, was released on parole on Monday despite a felony murder conviction and sentence of life without the possibility of parole.
He was 15 and homeless when three other teens enlisted him to help steal a car in 1995. One of the other teens shot and killed 24-year-old Christopher Ramos.
In 1997, Brooks was convicted of felony murder, with a mandatory life sentence and no parole. Since then, a series of U.S. Supreme Court rulings have deemed such sentences cruel and unusual for juvenile defendants.
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Last year, then Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper asked for the release of Brooks.
Since entering prison, Brooks' attorneys said he has learned several languages and earned his GED -- despite the fact he had no hope for release.
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