NOTE: As provided in LFC policy, this report is
intended only for use by the standing finance committees of the
legislature. The Legislative Finance Committee does not assume
responsibility for the accuracy of the information in this report when used for
other purposes.
The most recent FIR
version (in HTML & Adobe PDF formats) is available on the Legislative
Website. The Adobe PDF version includes
all attachments, whereas the HTML version does not. Previously issued FIRs and attachments may be
obtained from the LFC in
SPONSOR: |
Youngberg |
DATE TYPED: |
|
HB |
294/aHCPAC |
||
SHORT TITLE: |
Circumstances in Capital Felony Sentencing |
SB |
|
||||
|
ANALYST: |
Fox-Young |
|||||
APPROPRIATION
Appropriation
Contained |
Estimated
Additional Impact |
Recurring or
Non-Rec |
Fund Affected |
||
FY03 |
FY04 |
FY03 |
FY04 |
|
|
|
|
|
$0.1 Significant |
Recurring |
General
Fund |
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Parenthesis
( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Duplicates SB 51 and SB 272; Relates to SB 75
(includes a provision adding an aggravating circumstance for the deliberate,
intentional murder of a child less than thirteen years old)
Responses
Received From
Administrative
Office of the Courts (AOC)
Attorney
General (AG)
Corrections
Department (CD)
Administrative
Office of the District Attorneys (AODA)
Department
of Public Safety (DPS)
SUMMARY
Synopsis
of HCPAC Amendment
The House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee
amends House Bill 294, altering the new aggravating circumstance to read:
“the defendant, with the intent to kill, murdered a child less than eleven years of age.”
The amendment
clarifies that the accused must have intended to kill, where the original bill
did not include the element of intent.
The amendment does not specify that the accused must known the age of
the victim.
Synopsis
of Original Bill
House Bill 294 amends
Section 31-20A-5, adding one aggravating circumstance to the list
of aggravating circumstances that may be considered in a capital felony
proceeding. An individual who commits
first degree murder where “the victim was a child less than eleven
years of age,” will be eligible for the death penalty.
The bill also cleans
up technical language in the statute.
Significant Issues
The Public Defender
Department (PDD) notes that the bill does not provide that an offender must
have intended to kill or that an offender must have known that a victim was
under the age of eleven for the aggravating circumstance to apply.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
Death penalty prosecutions require significant resources of the courts, district attorneys, Public Defender Department (PDD) and the Attorney General (AG). The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) notes that district courts conduct a trial as well as a sentencing phase in death penalty cases, requiring a substantial commitment of resources from all of these agencies.
Between FY00 and FY02, the state spent $982.5 for
prosecution of death penalty cases resulting from a single incident, the
The
Corrections Department (CD) notes that in the long term, the bill could result
in a small cost savings to the department if more offenders are executed rather
than serving lengthy prison. sentences.
JCF/prr/njw