SB18 Alabama 2017 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Hank Sanders

Democrat

Session

Regular Session 2017

Title

Capital cases, sentencing, court prohibited from overriding jury verdict, Secs. 13A-5-45, 13A-5-46, 13A-5-47 am'd.

Summary

SB18 would prohibit a court from overriding a jury’s verdict in capital cases, binding the judge to the jury’s sentence recommendation.

What This Bill Does

In capital cases, the bill requires the sentence to be determined by the jury’s advisory verdict rather than by the judge alone. If the jury recommends death, the court must sentence the defendant to death; if not, the court must sentence to life imprisonment without parole. The jury’s verdict is to be based on a majority for life-without-parole and at least 10 jurors for death. The bill makes these changes by amending the relevant sentencing statutes.

Who It Affects

• Defendants convicted of capital offenses in Alabama — their sentence would be determined by the jury’s advisory verdict (death or life without parole).
• Juries and trial courts in capital cases — juries would decide the sentence and courts would be required to implement that verdict, not override it.

Key Provisions

• Prohibits the court from overriding a jury verdict in capital cases; the sentence must follow the jury's advisory verdict.
• Death verdict requires at least 10 jurors voting for death; life-without-parole verdict requires a majority of jurors.
• If the jury returns death, the court must sentence the defendant to death; if not, the court must sentence to life imprisonment without parole.
• Amends Sections 13A-5-45, 13A-5-46, and 13A-5-47 to implement the binding role of the jury’s verdict, while preserving sentencing procedures and pre-sentence investigations.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Criminal Law and Procedure