SB 42

Under existing law, a defendant convicted of a violent offense is eligible for parole once he or she has served one third or 10 years of his or her sentence, whichever is less, except by a unanimous affirmative vote of the board

This bill would require a defendant convicted of murder, rape in the first degree, sodomy in the first degree, sexual torture, sexual abuse in the first degree, or human trafficking in the first degree to serve 85 percent of his or her sentence before being eligible for parole

This bill would further provide for technical revisions

Relating to pardons and paroles; to add Section 15-22-27.4 to the Code of Alabama 1975, to require a defendant convicted of murder, rape in the first degree, sodomy in the first degree, sexual torture, sexual abuse in the first degree, or human trafficking in the first degree to serve 85 percent of his or her sentence before being eligible for parole; to amend Sections 15-22-27.3 and 15-22-28, Code of Alabama 1975, to provide for technical revisions.

Section 1

Section 15-22-27.4 is added to the Code of Alabama 1975, to read as follows: §15-22-27.4. Notwithstanding Section 15-22-28, any defendant convicted of any act, or attempt to commit the act, of murder, rape in the first degree, sodomy in the first degree, sexual torture, sexual abuse in the first degree, or human trafficking in the first degree shall not be eligible for parole until he or she has served 85 percent of his or her sentence.

Section 2

Sections 15-22-27.3 and 15-22-28, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:

§15-22-27.3.

Any person convicted of a sex offense involving a child as defined in subdivision (26) of Section 15-20A-4 which constitutes a Class A or B felony shall not be eligible for parole.

§15-22-28.

(a) It shall be the duty of the Board of Pardons and Paroles, upon its own initiative, to make an investigation of any and all prisoners confined in the jails and prisons of the state, through use of a validated risk and needs assessment as defined in Section 12-25-32, with a view of determining the feasibility of releasing the prisoners on parole and effecting their reclamation. Reinvestigations shall be made from time to time as the board may determine or as the Department of Corrections may request. The investigations shall include such reports and other information as the board may require from the Department of Corrections or any of its officers, agents, or employees.

(b) It shall be the duty of the Department of Corrections to cooperate with the Board of Pardons and Paroles for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this article.

(c) Temporary leave from prison, including Christmas furloughs, may be granted only by the Commissioner of Corrections to a prisoner for good and sufficient reason and may be granted within or without the state; provided, that Christmas furloughs shall not be granted to any prisoner convicted of drug peddling, child molesting or rape, or to any maximum security prisoner. A permanent, written record of all such temporary leaves, together with the reasons therefor, shall be kept by such commissioner. He or she shall furnish the Pardon and Parole Board Board of Pardons and Paroles with a record of each such leave granted and the reasons therefor, and the same shall be placed by the board in the prisoner's file.

(d) No prisoner shall be released on parole except by a majority vote of the board. The board shall not parole any prisoner for employment by any official of the State of Alabama, nor shall any parolee be employed by an official of the State of Alabama and be allowed to remain on parole; provided, however, that this provision shall not apply in the case of a parolee whose employer, at the time of the parolee's original employment, was not a state official.

(e) Except as provided in Section 15-22-26.4, for For violent offenses as defined in Section 12-25-32, the board shall not grant a parole to any prisoner who has not served at least one third or 10 years of his or her sentence, whichever is the lesser, except by a unanimous affirmative vote of the board."

Section 3

This act shall become effective on the first day of the third month following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.