Willbanks v. Missouri Department of Corrections, 522 S.W.3d 238

Willbanks was 17 when he participated in an armed carjacking/robbery that left the victim shot and permanently injured; he was convicted of kidnapping, first-degree assault, two counts of first-degree robbery, and three counts of armed criminal action.
The trial court imposed consecutive terms: 15 years (kidnapping), life (assault), 20 years (each robbery), and 100 years (each armed-criminal-action), totaling life plus 355 years.
Under Missouri law and DOC rules, Willbanks would not be parole-eligible until about age 85 (statistical life expectancy ~79).
Willbanks argued his aggregate fixed-term sentence is the "functional equivalent" of life without parole (LWOP) and thus violates the Eighth Amendment under Graham v. Florida because he has no meaningful opportunity for release.
The trial court sustained judgment on the pleadings for the DOC; the Missouri Supreme Court affirmed, holding Graham does not control aggregate multiple fixed-term sentences and Missouri’s mandatory parole minimums are constitutional as applied here.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Graham’s Eighth Amendment bar on juvenile LWOP extends to aggregate consecutive fixed-term sentences that make parole eligibility beyond life expectancy	Willbanks: aggregate fixed-term sentences that delay parole past life expectancy are the functional equivalent of LWOP and deny a meaningful opportunity for release, violating Graham	State/DOC: Graham addressed life-without-parole sentences for a juvenile single sentence; it does not control cases with multiple consecutive fixed-term sentences totaling beyond life expectancy; Missouri’s statutes/regulations are constitutional	Court: Graham is not controlling for multiple aggregated fixed-term sentences; affirmed the sentences and Missouri’s mandatory parole provisions as constitutional

Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48 (2010) (Eighth Amendment bars life without parole for juvenile nonhomicide offenders; juveniles must have a meaningful opportunity for release)
Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012) (mandatory LWOP for juvenile homicide offenders unconstitutional; requires individualized consideration of youth)
Montgomery v. Louisiana, 136 S. Ct. 718 (2016) (Miller’s rule is substantive and applies retroactively)
Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551 (2005) (capital punishment for juvenile offenders unconstitutional; youth reduces culpability)
Budder v. Addison, 851 F.3d 1047 (10th Cir. 2017) (applied Graham categorically to invalidate aggregate term-of-years sentences that are de facto LWOP)
Moore v. Biter, 725 F.3d 1184 (9th Cir. 2013) (held extremely long aggregate juvenile sentence that precludes parole in the juvenile’s lifetime violates Graham)
McKinley v. Butler, 809 F.3d 908 (7th Cir. 2016) (applied Miller/Graham logic to de facto LWOP aggregate sentences)
Bunch v. Smith, 685 F.3d 546 (6th Cir. 2012) (refused to extend Graham to aggregate sentences in federal habeas context; emphasized limits of habeas review)