NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FEDERAL LAWYERS
Can you get life for carjacking
|Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group – a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek. We have over 40 years of combined experience defending clients in the most serious federal cases you can imagine. Our team has represented clients in cases that made national headlines – from the Anna Delvey case that became a Netflix series, to the Ghislaine Maxwell juror misconduct case, to defending someone accused of stalking Alec Baldwin. If you’re facing federal carjacking charges and wondering whether life in prison is on the table, this article explains when that’s possible, what the law actually says, and what we’ve seen happen in real cases this year.
Yes – you can absolutely get life for carjacking. Under federal law, if someone dies during a carjacking, the penalty can be life in prison or even the death penalty. This isn’t theoretical. In 2025, multiple defendants received life sentences for federal carjacking cases where death resulted. Federal prosecutors treat carjacking resulting in death as one of the most serious violent crimes – and judges sentence accordingly.
The Federal Carjacking Statute Has Three Penalty Tiers
18 U.S.C. § 2119 divides carjacking into three categories based on the harm caused. No injury means up to 15 years in federal prison. Serious bodily injury pushes that to 25 years maximum. Death resulting from the carjacking – that’s where life sentences and the death penalty become possible.
The statute doesn’t impose mandatory minimums for carjacking itself, but the penalties escalate dramatically when someone gets hurt or killed. Federal judges have enormous discretion at the top end of these ranges. You’re not looking at “15 years or life” as random options – the sentencing guidelines and the specific facts of your case determine where you land within each tier.
Most federal carjacking cases involve weapons, which triggers additional charges under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) for using a firearm during a crime of violence. Those charges stack. Carjacking with a gun means you’re facing the carjacking penalty plus a consecutive mandatory minimum for the gun – 5 years, 7 years, or more depending on how the weapon was used. When death results, you’re often charged with both carjacking resulting in death and using a firearm causing death, each carrying potential life sentences.
Intent to Cause Death or Serious Bodily Harm – Prosecutors Must Prove This
Federal carjacking isn’t just taking someone’s car by force. The government must prove you had “the intent to cause death or serious bodily harm” when you took the vehicle. That’s a specific intent requirement written into the statute. It separates carjacking from simple robbery or vehicle theft.
What does that look like in practice? Pointing a loaded gun at someone while demanding their keys typically satisfies the intent requirement. Threatening to shoot someone if they don’t get out of the car – that’s intent to cause serious harm. Dragging someone out of a vehicle while brandishing a weapon shows the requisite intent.
But intent becomes a contested issue in cases where the government’s evidence is weaker. Did you make verbal threats? Was the weapon visible? Did you physically harm or threaten the victim, or did you just take an unoccupied vehicle? Federal prosecutors sometimes overcharge – calling something carjacking when it’s really vehicle theft without the intent element. At Spodek Law Group, we’ve seen many, many cases where challenging the intent element is the strongest defense strategy available.
2025 Cases Show Courts Actually Impose Life Sentences for Carjacking
This isn’t just about what’s legally possible – it’s about what actually happens. In September 2025, a defendant in Danville, Illinois received four life sentences for carjacking and murder convictions. In Albuquerque, federal prosecutors charged a defendant with carjacking resulting in death and kidnapping resulting in death in August 2025 – crimes eligible for the death penalty under federal law, with life in prison as the minimum if convicted.
An Orlando case from February 2025 involved a defendant facing a minimum life sentence and up to three death penalties stemming from carjacking causing death. Another defendant in that same case pleaded guilty in April 2024, facing a minimum penalty of life in federal prison.
These cases share common elements – death resulted, weapons were involved, and prosecutors brought maximum charges. When someone dies during a carjacking, the U.S. Attorney’s Office doesn’t negotiate down easily. They pursue life sentences or the death penalty.
That’s the reality in 2025. Federal carjacking cases resulting in death almost always result in life sentences when the defendant is convicted. Plea agreements might avoid the death penalty, but life without parole is typically the floor for these negotiations.
Federal Jurisdiction Requires Interstate Commerce – Most Vehicles Qualify
Carjacking becomes a federal crime when the vehicle “has been transported, shipped, or received in interstate or foreign commerce.” That sounds like a narrow requirement, but it’s not. Almost every vehicle in the United States crosses state lines at some point – from the factory to the dealer, from one state to another during its lifetime, or through parts and components shipped across state borders.
Federal prosecutors satisfy this element easily. The car was manufactured in one state and sold in another? That’s interstate commerce. The vehicle was imported from another country? Foreign commerce. The interstate commerce requirement rarely prevents federal prosecution.
What matters more is whether federal prosecutors want your case. Local carjackings without death or serious injury typically remain in state court. Carjackings involving death, organized crime, or particularly violent circumstances draw federal attention. Once the case goes federal, you’re facing the full range of penalties – including life sentences when death results.
Why You Need Experienced Federal Defense Lawyers for Carjacking Charges
At Spodek Law Group, our criminal defense attorneys understand how federal carjacking cases work. We know the statutes, the sentencing guidelines, the recent case law, and what federal prosecutors focus on when building these cases. Our managing partner, Todd Spodek, is a second-generation criminal defense lawyer with many, many years of experience handling federal violent crime cases.
Carjacking charges that could result in life sentences require a defense team that challenges every element – intent, identification, federal jurisdiction, the circumstances of any injury or death, and whether lesser charges are appropriate. We’ve represented clients in cases others said were unwinnable. That’s what we do.
Federal prosecutors often have strong evidence – surveillance video, victim testimony, physical evidence, cell phone location data. But strong evidence doesn’t mean the case is perfect. Intent to cause serious harm can be challenged. The connection between your actions and any resulting death can be contested. Witness identifications can be unreliable. Constitutional violations can suppress evidence.
When life in prison is the potential sentence, every detail matters. We’ve handled high-stakes cases involving allegations like stalking Alec Baldwin, Anna Delvey conning wealthy NYC elites, and juror misconduct in the Ghislaine Maxwell trial. We understand how to defend cases with maximum penalties at stake.
If you’re facing federal carjacking charges – especially charges involving death or serious bodily injury – contact Spodek Law Group immediately. We’re available 24/7, we represent clients coast-to-coast, and we focus only on clients we can truly help. Regardless of how complicated your case is, or how challenging it is – we can help you understand your options and fight for the best possible outcome.