We can’t know what Brown’s mindset was at the time. And for those of us who have never experienced those kinds of traumatic life circumstances, its impossible to imagine being the age of a high school junior and living with a pimp who is forcing you to sell your body to men much older than you. But what we can have some empathy for her lost childhood. And we can wonder why, as a juvenile offender, she was forced into life sentences plus additional time, though we can make some guesses since she is a poor, young woman of color. Brown won’t be eligible for parole until she is 69 years old. What kind of society are we that throws away young people, even when they do unspeakable things, forever?

In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that life sentences for juveniles are unconstitutional, and advocates are trying to change the law in Tennessee. One lawmaker, State Rep. Jeremy Faison, a Republican from Nashville, introduced a bill to “require reviews of life sentences for juveniles after they serve 15 years in prison. It was roundly defeated.”

For her part, Brown has been a model inmate and used her time in prison as best she could.

After getting her G.E.D., she got an associate degree from Lipscomb University, a private Christian college in Nashville that teaches classes at the prison. She hopes to earn a bachelor of arts degree by next year, [Charles Bone, her pro bono attorney] said.

This is an issue that even fair-minded Republicans can get on board with. Here’s what Rep. Faison had to say about Brown:

“I was amazed at the person I met,” he said. “She was kind, intelligent, she had a disposition or presence about her that was just amazing.” He described Ms. Brown as “extremely remorseful,” but said she also thinks “it was unjust what had happened in her life, and what a 40-year-old man was doing to her.”

What do you think? Should Brown spend the next 40 years in prison? Of course, with the current administration, its unlikely that she will receive any mercy. But perhaps with enough advocacy and a change in state law, she may be entitled to a case review or a new trial.