In Jason's own words

"My name is Jason Mills.

In the summer of 1992, when I was 19 years old, I committed a terrible and tragic crime that took the life of an innocent man.

At the time, I had fallen on hard times and made a series of decisions that led me to commit a residential burglary at a home I believed was unoccupied. I was wrong.

I was unexpectedly confronted by the victim, and in that moment, everything escalated. What followed was a senseless and irreversible act of violence that ended in the loss of a man’s life.

There is no justification for what I did.

I have spent the last 34 consecutive years in prison serving a sentence of life without parole. Every day, I live with the knowledge of what I took—not just a life, but a person who was loved, and a family who continues to carry that loss.

The weight of that has never left me. It is something I carry with me every day, and it is something I will carry for the rest of my life.

No words I can write will ever be enough to fully express the guilt and shame I feel for my actions.

All I can do is continue to take responsibility for what I have done and live in a way that reflects how deeply I regret it."

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Jason has now spent more than three decades in prison for his actions.

The years he has served are a direct consequence of what he did, and he does not ask for sympathy for that. What he has done instead is use that time to confront the reality of his actions and to change.

This petition is not based on who Jason was at 19 years old.

It is based on who he has chosen to become over the last 34 years.

His record reflects that transformation:

*Despite spending over three decades in the harshest Illinois prison systems, he has not committed a single violent disciplinary infraction

*Completion of over 1,000 hours of structured learning and rehabilitation programming

*92 completed courses and certifications focused on behavioral change, decision-making, conflict resolution, and career development

*Continued engagement in self-directed learning, including hundreds of additional educational modules, readings, and training materials

This level of sustained effort reflects not mere compliance—but a deep and consistent commitment to change.

Not for recognition. Not for reward. But because it was necessary.

Since Jason was sentenced, the law has evolved.

There is now a broader understanding—reflected in changes to sentencing laws—that individuals under the age of 21 possess a greater capacity for growth, rehabilitation, and change. Courts and policymakers increasingly recognize that youth and emerging adulthood matter, and that sentences imposed decades ago may not reflect what we now know.

Jason was 19 years old at the time of his offense.

He is not claiming entitlement to release, nor is he seeking to excuse his past. Instead, he is asking for the opportunity to be considered under these updated legal standards—for a chance at resentencing that reflects both modern law and who he has become.

It is about recognizing that a person is more than the worst thing they have ever done, and that change, when demonstrated consistently over time, has meaning.

We are asking Illinois lawmakers to consider Jason’s case not as an excuse for the past, but as evidence of transformation—and in light of the legal and societal changes that now recognize the unique capacity for change in young people.

Clemency does not undo harm.

It does not erase loss.

But it can recognize growth.

And it can allow a life, once defined by a terrible act, to be reconsidered under today’s standards—and lived differently moving forward.

Jason is not asking to be excused.

Only for the chance to be reconsidered—and to prove, in the free world, who he has become.

We respectfully ask for mercy, and for the opportunity for resentencing under the laws as they stand today.