A House panel on Thursday sent to the full chamber a bill to end life-without-parole sentences for juveniles.
If approved by the House, the bill would then go to the governor.
Legislation similar to Senate Bill 294 -- which applies retroactively to reduce life sentences for offenders sentenced before their 18th birthday -- was bottled up in the House in 2015. However, one of the chief opponents two years ago, Rep. Rebecca Petty, R-Rogers is now a co-sponsor.
The legislation is aimed at bringing Arkansas in line with recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions declaring unconstitutional mandatory life sentences for minors. After the high court declared in 2016 that its decisions applied retroactively, prosecutors have begun to go through cases individually to determine new sentences.
Instead of applying new sentences on a case-by-case basis, SB294 automatically would make inmates sent away for life as minors eligible for parole after 20 or 30 years, depending on their level of culpability. Such offenders would not be eligible for further sentence reductions for good behavior.
There are about 110 people in Arkansas prisons serving life terms for crimes they committed as minors, said James Dold, an advocate with the Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth. Many young or teenage offenders have yet to form the same cognitive abilities as adults, he said.
The legislation passed the Senate last month. It is sponsored by Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View, who also sponsored the 2015 attempt to remove life-without-parole sentences for juveniles.
Petty became a sponsor after meeting with advocates, including Dold and a former Chicago gang member sent to prison at 15 for murder. Petty, who has a degree in criminal justice, is also the mother of a murder victim, and her daughter's killer currently sits on Arkansas' death row.
Changes made to the proposal since it was last brought to the House in 2015 include longer minimum terms for murder, removing eligibility for good-behavior reductions, and automatic mental health evaluations when juveniles enter the prison system and follow-ups when they are able to leave.
Xavier McElrath-Bey, the former gang member-turned-advocate who spoke to the committee, said SB294 will allow children who have genuinely reformed in prison to get a second shot at life, while keeping the offenders who remain dangerous locked up.
Several committee members said Petty's assurances were also a deciding factor.
"This is the type of legislation I cannot support unless I hear from someone like Rebecca, who has lived it," said Rep. Trevor Drown, R-Dover.
The committee voiced approval of the bill without any audible dissent. Petty said she hopes to present the bill on the House floor next week.
A Section on 03/10/2017