Session of 2025
SENATE BILL No. 255
By Committee on Federal and State Affairs
2-10
AN ACT concerning crimes, punishment and criminal procedure; enacting
the second look act; relating to sentencing; authorizing certain inmates
in the custody of the secretary of corrections to petition the court that
originally sentenced such inmate for a resentencing hearing.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. (a) This section shall be known as the second look act.
(b) An inmate in the custody of the secretary of corrections described
in this subsection may file a verified petition as provided in subsection (c).
Such petition may be filed:
(1) After 10 years have elapsed from the date of sentencing if the
inmate was less than 25 years of age on the date the offense was
committed;
(2) after 15 years have elapsed from the date of sentencing if the
inmate was 25 or more years of age but less than 50 years of age on the
date the offense was committed;
(3) after 10 years have elapsed from the date of sentencing if the
inmate was 50 or more years of age on the date the offense was
committed;
(4) after 10 years have elapsed from the date of sentencing if the
inmate is a veteran and the veteran status of the defendant was not
considered at sentencing;
(5) after 10 years have elapsed from the date of sentencing and the
inmate completed any rehabilitative programming that was required as part
of the original sentence; and
(6) on the effective date of a legislative enactment that was not made
retroactive but that would have reduced the inmate's sentence if the law
was made retroactive.
(c) A verified petition for resentencing shall be filed in the district
court in the county where the inmate was convicted of the offense for
which with inmate is requesting resentencing. The petition shall include:
(1) The inmate's full name;
(2) the inmate's full name at the time of conviction if different from
the inmate's current name;
(3) the conviction for which the inmate is requesting resentencing;
(4) the date of conviction for the offense for which the inmate is
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requesting resentencing; and
(5) the original criminal case number of the case associated with the
conviction for which the inmate is requesting resentencing.
(d) When the petition is filed, the court shall set a date for a hearing
on such petition and cause notice of the hearing to be given to the county
or district attorney in the county where the petition is filed.
(e) The county or district attorney shall notify any victim of the
offense for which the inmate has requested a hearing for resentencing who
is alive and whose address is known or, if the victim is deceased, the
victim's family if the family's address is known. The victim or the victim's
family shall have the right to testify at the hearing but shall not be
compelled to testify or provide discovery to the inmate.
(f) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 68 of chapter 21 of
the Kansas Statutes Annotated, and amendments thereto, if the court finds
good cause to resentence the inmate, the court may impose a new sentence
that:
(A) Reduces the total length of the sentence;
(B) releases the inmate from the custody of the secretary of
corrections and adds the remainder of such inmate's sentence to such
inmate's postrelease supervision term; or
(C) discharges the inmate from the remainder of the defendant's
sentence.
(2) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any portion of a
sentence imposed that is a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment.
(g) If the court denies a petition under this section, the inmate shall
not file another petition under this section until five years have elapsed
after such denial, unless a shorter time period is authorized by the court in
an order denying a petition.
Sec. 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
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