Senate Unanimously Passes Habitual Offender Bill
November 10, 2011 - On Thursday, November 10, the Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 2054, An Act Relative to Habitual Offenders, Sentencing, and Improving Law Enforcement Tools.
This comprehensive bill updates the Commonwealth's parole and sentencing laws, creating one of the country's toughest "three-strikes" laws, taking away parole eligibility for criminals convicted of three serious, violent offenses, including over 60 crimes such as: murder, manslaughter, mayhem, rape, kidnapping, and assault and battery causing serious bodily injury.
In addition to the three-strikes law, the bill also:
- Prohibits individuals convicted of crimes carrying a sentence of 2 1/2 years or more from possessing firearms.
- Requires mandatory post-release supervision of 25% of the maximum sentence for the crime, but no shorter than 9 months.
- Violent offenders facing their second conviction will have to serve 2/3 of their sentence before becoming eligible for parole, an increase from the 1/2 they are currently required to serve.
- Inmates serving multiple life sentences will no longer be eligible for parole and parole decisions for inmates serving one life sentence must be approved by 2/3 of the Parole Board, an increse from the current 1/2.
- Increases the punishment for subsequent convictions of possession of an illegal firearm.
- Creates new crimes of: strangulation, murder for hire, assault with a firearm, and assault and battery by discharging a firearm.
- Requires the Parole Board to post decisions on-line where practical and to record a count of members voting for and against parole.
Habitual Offender Bill Press Release.
A copy of the bill text is available on the Legislature's Website here.
You can also view a summary of the bill here.
