Bill > HB4059

This bill, titled the Capital Crimes Litigation Act of 2015, reinstates the death penalty in Illinois by amending existing laws. It modifies the Criminal Code of 2012 to reintroduce and alter aggravating factors that can lead to a death sentence for first-degree murder, specifically including murder of a peace officer, correctional employee, or fireman, and multiple murders. The bill also amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 to remove the provision that abolished the death penalty and transfers funds from the now-defunct Death Penalty Abolition Fund to a newly established Capital Litigation Trust Fund. This fund will finance the prosecution and defense of capital cases, including providing legal assistance, expert witnesses, investigators, and mitigation specialists for indigent defendants. Furthermore, the bill amends the State Appellate Defender Act to ensure the Office of the State Appellate Defender provides support to trial counsel in capital cases but is not appointed as trial counsel itself, and it clarifies that defense budgets and compensation petitions in capital cases are exempt from public disclosure until the conclusion of the trial and any appeals.