Bill > SB341

This bill proposes to establish the death penalty for specific circumstances involving the death of children or law enforcement officers. Under the proposed law, individuals could be sentenced to death if they cause a child's death through willful neglect or abuse, cause a child's death while committing a felony under the Controlled Substances Act, or cause the death of a law enforcement officer while committing a felony. The bill outlines several aggravating circumstances that could support a death penalty sentence, including prior convictions for child abuse, failure to follow child welfare department plans, the degree of suffering inflicted, the victim's age, premeditation, prior violent criminal history, multiple victims, community endangerment, and gang membership. The legislation ensures due process rights for defendants, requiring a separate hearing to determine death penalty justification and mandating a unanimous jury decision. Defendants must prove mitigating circumstances by a preponderance of evidence, and any death penalty conviction will be automatically appealed to the state Supreme Court for a comprehensive review. However, even in cases with mitigating circumstances, the minimum sentence would be life imprisonment without parole.