New research suggests that people serving life without parole make up an increasingly large share of the prison population. Use of the death penalty has declined drastically in the U.S., but researchers say that alone does not explain the growth of life and life-without-parole sentencing. A significant portion of people serving “death by incarceration” sentences were convicted of offenses such as robbery, burglary or drug crimes under habitual offender laws in many states. ✍️: Cary Aspinwall & 🎥: Chris Vazquez / The Marshall Project Transcript: CHRIS VAZQUEZ: Hey, prosecutors? How often are you seeking the death penalty? PROSECUTORS: Not as much as we used to. Instead, we’re seeking life sentences. CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESEARCHERS: People serving life without parole are making up more and more of the prison population. CHRIS: Why? LAWMAKERS: Back in the ’80s and ’90s, we passed “habitual offender” laws, meaning if you commit some crimes — like burglary or robbery — more than once, you can get a longer prison sentence. CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESEARCHERS: But there are huge racial disparities in who gets sentenced under these laws, and who’s eligible for parole. Plus, it means people are aging into their 60s or older behind bars. CHRIS: So, are they actually a danger to anybody on the outside? CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESEARCHERS: Probably not. We studied how many people released from prison commit new crimes in Louisiana. It was essentially zero in people who’d served more than 26 years. And the rate was particularly low for people convicted of murder. CHRIS: What if they were wrongfully convicted? Can’t they just get out of prison? COURTS: The system doesn’t make it that easy. For people facing execution, we have to evaluate them using higher legal protections. But those protections don’t apply to people who are locked up for life.