Last night Philadelphia's First Unitarian Church hosted a forum about how other cities and states are ending the use of cash bail in the criminal justice system.  

By Russell Frank

There’s a faint glimmer of hope for Pennsylvanians who are condemned to spend the rest of their lives in prison.

House Bill 2135, introduced last spring by state Rep. Jason Dawkins (D-Phila.), would make inmates serving a life sentence eligible for parole review after 15 years.

Subramanyam Vedam would certainly qualify. He was a 19-year-old State College kid when his friend Tom Kinser disappeared in 1980. He was 21 when he was accused of killing Kinser and then found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole (LWOP).