The House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee has once again recommended a bill that would close a sentencing loophole for 17-year-olds convicted of capital murder.
Members passed House Bill 4 with a 5-1 vote Tuesday morning following public testimony Monday.
State Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburgh, cast the dissenting vote. Canales has been pushing his own version of a new sentencing structure that would allow for life with parole and life without parole. But House Bill 10 also included a lengthy list of mitigating circumstances to be used during sentencing.
Canales’ bill was left pending in committee.
This is the third time lawmakers have tried to get the matter resolved. Gov. Rick Perry added the sentencing issue to the first and, now, second special session after prosecutors statewide urged action.
The state needs to come into compliance with last year’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that barred mandatory life without parole for anyone under 18. The high court determined juveniles deserve a chance at rehabilitation and release.
In Texas, that affected one particular population — 17-year-olds convicted of capital murder. They receive a mandatory life without parole sentence.
After that was deemed unconstitutional, pending cases and those on appeal were put on hold, officials have testified.
Prosecutors have asked that state legislatures move 17-year-old capital murder defendants in with the criminal code that covers juveniles, ages 14-16, who receive mandatory life with parole eligibility at 40 years.
The Senate repeatedly has approved a bill that would do just that, but representatives have gone back and forth on what is appropriate punishment for a juvenile.
Senate Bill 2 also has passed out of committee and is waiting on a full hearing.
— Michelle Mondo