i'm pretty sure but not 100% that life in prison is not actually ur whole life in prison. it is a number... i think 99 years is a life sentence. so theoretically speaking, with great medical advances of course, someone could get life in prison and still be freed after that 99 years if they lived that long. think about how much we have come from 50 years ago. think about how long people will live in another 50 years. no dought life expectancy will increase over the next 50, 75, or 100 years. its just a matter of how much. so i guess giving a multiple life sentence is just a way of reassuring that this guy will not be freed and will get punished to the full extent of the law. ya get me?