Juvenile killers, years later

The April 20, 2011 New York Times article "Juvenile Killers in Jail for Life Seek a Reprieve," reviewed the stories of juvenile delinquents spending the rest of their lives in prison for crimes committed as young minors.
The article stated that roughly a year ago the Supreme Court ruled that sentencing juvenile offenders to life without the possibility of parole violated the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
The ruling only affected prisoners whose crimes did not involve killings. The decision affected around 130 prisoners convicted of crimes like rape, armed robbery and kidnapping.
The article told the story of a 25-year-old man, Mr. Lotts, who now is stuck in a maximum security prison for the rest of his life, for a crime he committed as a seventh grader.
Lotts killed his stepbrother in an accident that began with goofing around with a blowgun to an angry threat with a bow and arrow to an eventual fatal stabbing.
Now, cases like the above-mentioned are being appealed, arguing that the time served for the crimes committed are sufficient punishment.
These cases have left people wondering, when does punishment become cruel and unusual?
Matt Scorzafave