SLS 16RS-537 ORIGINAL
2016 Regular Session
SENATE BILL NO. 278
BY SENATOR BISHOP
JUVENILES. Provides relative to parole eligibility of offenders convicted of first or second
degree murder who were under the age of eighteen at the time of commission of the offense.
(7/1/16)
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact the introductory paragraph of R.S. 15:574.4(E)(1), to enact R.S.
3 15:574.4(E)(4) and to repeal Code of Criminal Procedure Article 878.1, relative to
4 parole eligibility; to provide relative to certain offenders convicted of certain crimes
5 who were juveniles at the time of commission of the offense; to repeal judicial
6 determination of parole eligibility; to provide for an effective date; and to provide
7 for related matters.
8 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
9 Section 1. Code of Criminal Procedure Article 878.1 is hereby repealed.
10 Section 2. The introductory paragraph of R.S. 15:574.4(E)(1) is hereby amended and
11 reenacted and R.S. 15:574.4(E)(4) is hereby enacted to read as follows:
12 ยง574.4. Parole; eligibility
13 * * *
14 E.(1) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any person
15 serving a sentence of life imprisonment for a conviction of first degree murder (R.S.
16 14:30) or second degree murder (R.S. 14:30.1) who was under the age of eighteen
17 years at the time of the commission of the offense shall be eligible for parole
Page 1 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions. SB NO. 278
SLS 16RS-537 ORIGINAL
1 consideration pursuant to the provisions of this Subsection if a judicial determination
2 has been made that the person is entitled to parole eligibility pursuant to Code of
3 Criminal Procedure Article 878.1 and all of the following conditions have been met:
4 * * *
5 (4) The provisions of this Subsection shall apply to all offenders and
6 alleged offenders, retrospectively and prospectively, regardless of the date of the
7 alleged offense or of the conviction.
8 Section 3. This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2016.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Dawn Romero Watson.
DIGEST
SB 278 Original 2016 Regular Session Bishop
Present law provides that notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any person
serving a sentence of life imprisonment for a conviction of first degree murder or second
degree murder who was under the age of 18 years at the time of the commission of the
offense shall be eligible for parole consideration if a judicial determination has been made
that the person is entitled to parole eligibility and all of the following conditions have been
met:
(1)The offender has served 35 years of the sentence imposed.
(2)The offender has not committed any major disciplinary offenses in the 12
consecutive months prior to the parole hearing date.
(3)The offender has completed the mandatory minimum of 100 hours of prerelease
programming.
(4)The offender has completed substance abuse treatment as applicable.
(5)The offender has obtained a GED certification, unless the offender has previously
obtained a high school diploma or is deemed by a certified educator as being
incapable of obtaining a GED certification due to a learning disability. If the offender
is deemed incapable of obtaining a GED certification, the offender shall complete
at least one of the following: a literacy program; an adult basic education program;
or, a job skills training program.
(6)The offender has obtained a low-risk level designation determined by a validated risk
assessment instrument approved by the secretary of the Department of Public Safety
and Corrections.
(7)The offender has completed a reentry program to be determined by the Department
of Public Safety and Corrections.
Proposed law removes the requirement that there be a judicial determination of parole
eligibility in cases where the offender is to be sentenced to life imprisonment for a
conviction of first or second degree murder when the offender was under the age of 18 at the
time of commission of the offense.
Page 2 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions. SB NO. 278
SLS 16RS-537 ORIGINAL
Provides that proposed law shall apply to all offenders and alleged offenders, retrospectively
and prospectively, regardless of the date of the alleged offense or the conviction.
Effective July 1, 2016.
(Amends R.S. 15:574.4(E)(1)(intro para); adds R.S. 15:574.4(E)(4); repeals C.Cr.P. Art.
878.1)
Page 3 of 3
Coding: Words which are struck through are deletions from existing law;
words in boldface type and underscored are additions.