State v. Seam, __ N.C. __, 794 S.E.2d 439 (2016)

For the reasons stated in State v. Young, 369 N.C. 118 (2016) (No. 80A14), the defendant’s mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without parole for a felony murder committed when defendant was 16-years old violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment under Miller v. Alabama, __ U.S. __, 132 S. Ct. 2455 (2012). The Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s order vacating defendant’s sentence and ordering a new sentencing hearing.