Iowa-2021-HF377-Introduced

House File 377 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 377 BY BAXTER , SALMON , BACON , JENEARY , WOLFE , MITCHELL , OSMUNDSON , LOHSE , OLSON , SHIPLEY , MOORE , WHEELER , BOSSMAN , A. MEYER , ABDUL-SAMAD , BOHANNAN , KAUFMANN , and DOLECHECK A BILL FOR An Act related to a commutation of sentence request from a 1 class “A” felon sentenced to life imprisonment without the 2 possibility of parole, establishing a life imprisonment 3 review committee to make recommendations in the case of a 4 minimum custody level applicant who has served at least 5 twenty-five years in prison, with reconsideration of a 6 sentence upon the governor’s request or inaction, and 7 providing expedited review in the case of an applicant’s 8 terminal illness and incapacitation. 9 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 10 TLSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh

H.F. 377 Section 1. Section 902.1, subsection 1, Code 2021, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 1. Upon a plea of guilty, a verdict of guilty, or a special 3 verdict upon which a judgment of conviction of a class “A” 4 felony may be rendered, the court shall enter a judgment of 5 conviction and shall commit the defendant into the custody of 6 the director of the Iowa department of corrections for the 7 rest of the defendant’s life. Nothing Except as otherwise 8 provided in section 902.4A, nothing in the Iowa corrections 9 code pertaining to deferred judgment, deferred sentence, 10 suspended sentence, or reconsideration of sentence applies to 11 a class “A” felony , and a person . A defendant convicted of a 12 class “A” felony shall not be released on parole unless the 13 governor commutes the defendant’s sentence to a term of years 14 or a district court reconsiders the defendant’s sentence and 15 resentences the person into the custody of the director of the 16 department of corrections for the rest of the defendant’s life 17 with the possibility of parole pursuant to section 902.2A or 18 902.4A . 19 Sec. 2. Section 902.2, Code 2021, is amended to read as 20 follows: 21 902.2 Commutation procedure for class “A” felons. 22 A person who has been sentenced to life imprisonment under 23 section 902.1 may, no more frequently than once every ten 24 years, make an application to the governor requesting that the 25 person’s sentence be commuted to a term of years. The director 26 of the Iowa department of corrections may make a request to 27 the governor that a person’s sentence be commuted to a term of 28 years at any time. Upon receipt of a request for commutation, 29 the governor shall , within thirty days of receipt of the 30 request, send a copy of the request to the Iowa board of parole 31 for investigation and along with recommendations as to whether 32 the person should be considered for receive commutation. The 33 Within one hundred twenty days of receipt of such request, the 34 board shall conduct an interview of the class “A” felon and 35 -1- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 1/ 15

H.F. 377 shall make a report of its findings and recommendations to 1 the governor. Any decision to recommend commutation shall be 2 by a majority vote of the board. Notwithstanding any other 3 provision of this section to the contrary, after the first 4 twenty-five years of a person’s sentence to life imprisonment 5 under section 902.1, if the person is, at the time of 6 application, classified as minimum security custody level, the 7 process for a request for commutation shall be as provided in 8 section 902.2A. Alternatively, an application for commutation 9 by or on behalf of any person sentenced to life imprisonment 10 under section 902.1 when the facts described in section 902.2B 11 exist shall be made and processed according to section 902.2B. 12 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 902.2A Life imprisonment review after 13 twenty-five years. 14 1. For the purposes of this section and section 902.4A: 15 a. “Applicant” means a person convicted of a class 16 “A” felony and sentenced to life imprisonment without the 17 possibility of parole. 18 b. “Committee” means the life imprisonment review committee 19 established pursuant to this section. 20 c. “Victim” means the same as defined in section 915.10. 21 2. A life imprisonment review committee is established. 22 The purpose of the committee shall be to make commutation 23 recommendations to the governor and to facilitate 24 reconsideration by the district court regarding applicants 25 under this section. 26 a. The governor shall appoint five members to the committee, 27 at least one of whom is a member of a racial minority, and two 28 alternates to the committee. Committee members and alternates 29 may include representatives from the Iowa state chapter of the 30 national association for the advancement of colored people 31 or other organizations that advocate on behalf of racial or 32 ethnic minorities, community-based organizations as defined 33 in section 7D.15, organizations focused on the reentry 34 of incarcerated individuals, the department of workforce 35 -2- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 2/ 15

H.F. 377 development, the department of public safety, the office of 1 the attorney general, and a judicial district department 2 of correctional services. Members may also include county 3 attorneys, defense attorneys, law enforcement officers, retired 4 judges, retired prison officials including wardens, deputy 5 wardens, and treatment directors, criminal justice researchers 6 and educators, and clergy. 7 b. Members shall serve four-year terms except for the terms 8 of the initial members, which shall be staggered so that at 9 least one of the members’ terms expire each calendar year. A 10 member may serve up to two consecutive terms. The committee 11 shall elect a chairperson who shall serve a one-year term and 12 may be elected to two consecutive terms. 13 c. Decisions of the committee shall require a majority of 14 its members. Alternates shall be included in lieu of members 15 unable to participate so that committee deliberations always 16 include five members. 17 3. After the first twenty-five years of an applicant’s 18 sentence to life imprisonment under section 902.1, an applicant 19 who is at the time of application classified as minimum 20 security custody level may, no more than once every three 21 years, make an application to the governor requesting that 22 the applicant’s sentence be commuted to a term of years. The 23 three-year limitation shall be waived for a person submitting 24 an application under section 902.2B. Upon receipt of an 25 application, or upon a request for commutation from the 26 director of the Iowa department of corrections on behalf of 27 an applicant at any time, the governor shall, within thirty 28 days of receipt of the application or request, send a copy of 29 the application or request to the committee for investigation 30 and recommendation as to whether the applicant should 31 receive commutation. Notwithstanding any other provision 32 of law to the contrary, the governor may, before or after 33 receiving the recommendation of the committee, commute the 34 applicant’s sentence to a term of years or the district court 35 -3- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 3/ 15

H.F. 377 may resentence the applicant to life imprisonment with the 1 possibility of parole pursuant to section 902.4A. 2 4. Upon receipt of an application for commutation under 3 this section, the committee shall conduct an investigation 4 concerning the applicant and the factors specified in 5 subsection 6. The department of corrections shall provide 6 the committee with access to the applicant’s case file. The 7 committee shall consider information submitted by the applicant 8 along with the applicant’s case file, any recommendations and 9 letters received on behalf of the applicant and any letters 10 from any victim of the offense for which the applicant is 11 incarcerated, and any other relevant information. 12 5. a. The committee shall set a date for a hearing, which 13 shall occur no later than one hundred twenty days after the 14 committee’s receipt of the application for commutation, to 15 determine whether to recommend the applicant for commutation. 16 However, if the one-hundred-twenty-day limit would require more 17 than two hearings in any calendar month, the committee may 18 extend this limitation by consecutive thirty-day periods as 19 necessary for the committee to hold no more than two hearings 20 per month, in the order of the date an application is received 21 and then, if necessary, in the order of greatest to least 22 amount of time served. 23 b. The committee shall notify the applicant and any 24 registered victim at least thirty days before the hearing 25 date, and the applicant and the applicant’s attorney, if 26 any, shall have the right to be present for the hearing by 27 videoconference. 28 c. The committee shall, within thirty days following the 29 hearing, make a recommendation for or against commutation of 30 the applicant’s sentence, and shall forward its recommendation 31 and report to the governor and to the board of parole. The 32 committee’s decision shall not be based upon the presence or 33 absence of any single factor listed in subsection 6. The board 34 of parole may, within thirty days of receipt of the committee’s 35 -4- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 4/ 15

H.F. 377 recommendation, notify the governor of any additional 1 recommendation in support of or contrary to the committee’s 2 recommendation. Any recommendation shall be made by a majority 3 vote of the board of parole. 4 6. In determining whether to recommend commutation of 5 the applicant’s sentence, the committee shall consider all 6 circumstances including but not limited to all of the following 7 factors: 8 a. Whether the applicant has performed acts that tend to 9 indicate rehabilitation, including but not limited to whether 10 the applicant participated in rehabilitative, educational, 11 or vocational programs, if available at the applicant’s 12 classification level and facility, whether the applicant 13 utilized available materials for self-improvement, and whether 14 the applicant participated in other programs designed to 15 promote behavior change and to prepare offenders for successful 16 reentry into the community. 17 b. Whether the applicant’s case file demonstrates that the 18 applicant shows respect for authority and has been deemed a 19 positive influence on others. 20 c. The applicant’s disciplinary record in prison. 21 d. Family or community supports of the applicant, including 22 whether the applicant has maintained relationships with 23 persons outside of prison through letters, calls, or visits, 24 and whether the applicant has eliminated contact with persons 25 outside of prison who are currently involved in criminal 26 activity. 27 e. Whether a meaningful plan for housing and support is 28 in place if the applicant is released indicating that the 29 applicant can be a contributing and positive member of society. 30 f. The applicant’s education and employment history, before 31 and during incarceration, including employable skills for 32 self-support if and when released, and any references received 33 from persons who have served as work supervisors during the 34 applicant’s period of incarceration. 35 -5- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 5/ 15

H.F. 377 g. The circumstances of the applicant’s crime, including 1 the degree of participation by the applicant and the nature and 2 severity of the crime, including any of the following: 3 (1) Whether the crime was committed while participating in 4 another felony. 5 (2) The number of victims. 6 (3) The heinous, brutal, cruel manner of the crime, 7 including whether the crime involved torture. 8 h. Whether the applicant was convicted of murder pursuant to 9 felony murder or aiding and abetting murder provisions of law, 10 but did not directly commit the act of murder. 11 i. Whether the applicant’s sentence of life without parole 12 was entered following a plea signed and accepted by all parties 13 in which the plea agreement recommended a different sentence. 14 j. The level of compulsion, duress, influence, abuse, or 15 trauma, if any, exerted upon the applicant, but not to such an 16 extent as to constitute a defense. 17 k. The capacity of the applicant to appreciate the 18 criminality of the conduct, including whether the applicant’s 19 ability to conform the applicant’s conduct with the 20 requirements of the law was substantially impaired and any 21 intellectual or mental incapacity at the time of the crime. 22 l. The chronological age of an applicant who was twenty-five 23 years of age or less at the time of the crime and the 24 features of youth, including immaturity, impetuosity, and 25 failure to appreciate risks and consequences; any familial 26 or peer pressure that may have affected the applicant; and 27 the competencies of youth including but not limited to the 28 applicant’s inability to deal with peace officers or the 29 prosecution or the applicant’s incapacity to assist the 30 applicant’s attorney in the applicant’s defense. 31 m. The family and home environment that surrounded the 32 applicant prior to incarceration; adult support or supervision 33 in the applicant’s childhood or youth; and any history of 34 psychological or physical trauma, domestic violence, or 35 -6- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 6/ 15

H.F. 377 significant stress. 1 n. Whether the applicant has any cognitive limitations due 2 to mental illness, any developmental disability, intoxication 3 or the influence of a drug or controlled substance, or any 4 other factors that did not constitute a defense but influenced 5 the applicant’s involvement in the crime. 6 o. The applicant’s remorse and acceptance of responsibility. 7 p. The applicant’s level of maturity, the likelihood of 8 the commission of further offenses by the applicant including 9 evidence that reflects whether age, time served, and diminished 10 physical or mental condition or terminal illness, if any, have 11 reduced the applicant’s risk for future violence. 12 q. The impact of the crime on each victim through the use of 13 a victim impact statement, as defined in section 915.10. The 14 victim impact statement may include information relating to the 15 applicant’s crime. 16 r. The impact of the crime on the community, including 17 evidence that circumstances have changed since the applicant’s 18 original sentencing so that the applicant’s continued 19 incarceration is no longer in the interest of justice. 20 s. The threat posed by the applicant to the safety of the 21 public or any particular person. 22 t. Whether the applicant’s application is supported by a 23 recommendation from one or more of the following persons: 24 (1) The director of the department of corrections. 25 (2) The chairperson of the Iowa board of parole. 26 (3) The warden from a prison where the applicant has been 27 incarcerated. 28 7. Upon receipt of any report and recommendation from the 29 committee and the board of parole, the governor may commute 30 the applicant’s sentence of life imprisonment without parole 31 to a term of years. Alternatively, the governor may deny the 32 commutation or take no action. 33 8. Upon the expiration of three months after a 34 recommendation by the committee in favor of commutation 35 -7- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 7/ 15

H.F. 377 was forwarded to the governor under this section, if the 1 governor has not taken any action on the application, the 2 committee shall, within thirty days of the expiration of the 3 three-month period, submit its recommendation and report, with 4 any associated recommendation or report from the board of 5 parole, to the district court in the county that originally 6 sentenced the applicant for reconsideration of the applicant’s 7 sentence pursuant to section 902.4A. Alternatively, at any 8 time after receipt of any recommendation and report from the 9 committee, the governor may direct the committee to submit that 10 recommendation and report, with any associated recommendation 11 or report from the board of parole, within thirty days 12 after direction from the governor, to the district court for 13 reconsideration of the applicant’s sentence pursuant to section 14 902.4A. 15 9. If the committee made a recommendation against 16 commutation and the governor has not granted commutation, 17 the committee shall send a summary report to the applicant 18 within four months of its report stating the reasons for its 19 recommendation against commutation. 20 10. An applicant whose life sentence has been commuted 21 to a term of years not already fully served or who has been 22 resentenced pursuant to section 902.4A shall be placed on 23 the corrections continuum pursuant to chapter 901B, and the 24 terms and conditions of parole, including violations, shall be 25 subject to the procedures specified in chapters 906 and 908 and 26 to rules adopted under those chapters for persons on parole. 27 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 902.2B Expedited review of class “A” 28 felony sentence upon terminal illness. 29 1. An application to the governor requesting that an 30 applicant’s sentence of life imprisonment under section 31 902.1 be commuted to a term of years already served may be 32 made under this section by the applicant, a family member of 33 the applicant, or any other personal representative of the 34 applicant if the following circumstances exist: 35 -8- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 8/ 15

H.F. 377 a. Any of the following: 1 (1) The applicant is terminally ill with an incurable 2 condition caused by an illness or disease that would produce 3 death within six months, as determined by a physician employed, 4 referred, or consulted by the department of corrections. 5 (2) The applicant is permanently medically incapacitated 6 with a medical condition including but not limited to due to 7 a coma, persistent vegetative state, brain death, ventilator- 8 dependency, or loss of control of muscular or neurological 9 function, that renders the applicant permanently unable to 10 perform activities of basic daily living and that results in 11 the applicant requiring twenty-four-hour total care, provided 12 the incapacitation did not exist at the time of the applicant’s 13 original sentencing. 14 b. The conditions under which the applicant may be released 15 do not pose a threat to public safety. 16 2. Within three business days of receipt of an application 17 submitted under this section, the governor shall send a copy 18 of the request to the board of parole, which shall, within 19 twenty days of receipt of the request, hold a hearing to 20 determine whether these facts are established. The department 21 of corrections shall provide the board of parole with access 22 to the applicant’s case file and relevant medical information. 23 The board of parole shall, no later than ten business days 24 after the hearing, determine whether the facts required under 25 this section have been established and report its decision to 26 the governor. The board’s determination shall be by a majority 27 vote. 28 3. Upon receipt of the board’s report, the governor may 29 commute the applicant’s sentence of life imprisonment without 30 parole to a term of years. Alternatively, the governor may 31 deny the commutation or take no action. 32 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 902.4A Reconsideration of a class “A” 33 felony sentence. 34 1. Upon receipt of the report and recommendation of the 35 -9- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 9/ 15

H.F. 377 committee as provided in section 902.2A, the district court, 1 in the county that originally sentenced the applicant, shall 2 order the applicant to be returned to the court, at which time 3 the court shall review the applicant’s sentence and reaffirm 4 it or substitute a sentence of commitment of the applicant to 5 the custody of the director of the department of corrections 6 for the rest of the applicant’s life with the possibility 7 of parole. Copies of the order to return the applicant to 8 the court shall be provided to the attorney for the state, 9 the applicant, and the applicant’s attorney, if any. The 10 court’s final order in the proceeding shall be delivered to the 11 applicant personally or by regular mail. 12 2. The court shall conduct a hearing to consider any 13 evidence deemed appropriate by the court including but not 14 limited to the factors set forth in section 902.2A. 15 3. The court’s decision to reaffirm or substitute a sentence 16 under this section is subject to appeal only for errors of law 17 or an abuse of discretion. 18 EXPLANATION 19 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 20 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 21 This bill relates to a commutation of sentence request from 22 a class “A” felon sentenced to life imprisonment without the 23 possibility of parole, establishes a life imprisonment review 24 committee to make recommendations in the case of a minimum 25 custody level applicant who has served at least 25 years in 26 prison, with reconsideration of a sentence upon the governor’s 27 request or inaction, and provides an expedited review in the 28 case of an applicant’s terminal illness and incapacitation. 29 Under current law, unless a defendant was under the age 30 of 18 at the time an offense was committed, upon a plea of 31 guilty, a verdict of guilty, or a special verdict upon which a 32 judgment of conviction of a class “A” felony may be rendered, 33 the court shall enter a judgment of conviction and shall commit 34 the defendant into the custody of the director of the Iowa 35 -10- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 10/ 15

H.F. 377 department of corrections for the rest of the defendant’s life. 1 A person convicted of a class “A” felony shall not be released 2 on parole unless the governor commutes the sentence to a term 3 of years. 4 The bill provides that a defendant convicted of a class “A” 5 felony shall not be released on parole unless the governor 6 commutes the defendant’s sentence to a term of years or the 7 district court resentences the defendant into the custody of 8 the director of the department of corrections for the rest of 9 the defendant’s life with the possibility of parole pursuant to 10 new Code section 902.2A or 902.4A. 11 Under current law, a person who has been sentenced to life 12 imprisonment may, no more than once every 10 years, make an 13 application to the governor requesting that the person’s 14 sentence be commuted to a term of years. The director of 15 the Iowa department of corrections may make a request to the 16 governor that a person’s sentence be commuted to a term of 17 years at any time. 18 The bill provides that, upon receipt of a request for 19 commutation, the governor shall, within 30 days of receipt 20 of the request, send a copy of the request to the Iowa board 21 of parole for investigation along with recommendations as to 22 whether the person should receive commutation. Within 120 23 days of receipt of such request, the board shall conduct an 24 interview of the class “A” felon and shall make a report of its 25 findings and recommendations to the governor. Any decision to 26 recommend commutation shall be by a majority vote of the board. 27 Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary in the 28 bill, after the first 25 years of a person’s sentence to life 29 imprisonment, if the person is at the time of the application 30 classified as minimum security custody level, the process for a 31 request for commutation shall be as provided in Code section 32 902.2A (life imprisonment review after 25 years), created in 33 the bill. Alternatively, an application for commutation by or 34 on behalf of any person sentenced to life imprisonment when the 35 -11- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 11/ 15

H.F. 377 facts described in Code section 902.2B (expedited review of 1 class “A” felony sentence upon terminal illness), created in 2 the bill, shall be made and processed according to that Code 3 section. 4 The bill establishes a life imprisonment review committee 5 to review life sentences after a person has served 25 years. 6 The bill defines “applicant” as a person convicted of a class 7 “A” felony and sentenced to life imprisonment without the 8 possibility of parole, “committee” as the life imprisonment 9 review committee established in the bill, and “victim” as a 10 person who has suffered physical, emotional, or financial harm 11 as the result of a public offense or a delinquent act, other 12 than a simple misdemeanor, committed in the state. “Victim” 13 also includes the immediate family members of a victim who 14 died or was rendered incompetent as a result of the offense or 15 who was under the age of 18 at the time of the offense. The 16 committee is established to make commutation recommendations 17 to the governor and facilitate reconsideration by the district 18 court regarding applicants. The bill provides provisions 19 relating to the composition of the committee and voting 20 requirements. 21 The bill provides that after the first 25 years of an 22 applicant’s sentence to life imprisonment, an applicant who 23 is at the time of application classified as minimum security 24 custody level may, no more than once every three years, make 25 an application to the governor requesting that the applicant’s 26 sentence be commuted to a term of years. This three-year 27 limitation shall be waived in the case of an applicant who 28 is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Upon receipt of an 29 application, or upon a request for commutation from the 30 director of the Iowa department of corrections on behalf of 31 an applicant at any time, the governor shall, within 30 days 32 of receipt of the application or request, send a copy of the 33 application or request to the committee for investigation 34 and recommendation as to whether the applicant should 35 -12- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 12/ 15

H.F. 377 receive commutation. Notwithstanding any other provision 1 of law to the contrary, the governor may, before or after 2 receiving the recommendation of the committee, commute the 3 applicant’s sentence to a term of years or the district court 4 may resentence the applicant to life imprisonment with the 5 possibility of parole. 6 The bill provides that upon receipt of an application for 7 commutation, the committee shall conduct an investigation and 8 hold a hearing concerning the applicant and shall consider 9 the applicant’s circumstances according to certain factors as 10 provided in the bill. The committee shall set a date for a 11 hearing, which shall occur no later than 120 days after the 12 committee’s receipt of the application for commutation unless 13 the 120-day limit would require more than two hearings in 14 any calendar month. The committee may extend this limit by 15 consecutive 30-day periods as necessary for the committee to 16 hold no more than two hearings per month. The committee shall, 17 within 30 days following the hearing, make a recommendation for 18 or against commutation of the applicant’s sentence, and shall 19 forward its recommendation and report to the governor and to 20 the board of parole. The board of parole may, within 30 days 21 following the hearing, notify the governor of any additional 22 recommendations or reports in support of or contrary to the 23 committee’s recommendation. Any recommendation shall be by a 24 majority vote of the board of parole. 25 The bill provides that upon receipt of any reports and 26 recommendations from the committee and from the board of 27 parole, the governor may commute the applicant’s sentence 28 of life imprisonment without parole to a term of years, 29 deny the commutation, or take no action. Three months after 30 a recommendation by the committee in favor of commutation 31 was forwarded to the governor, if the governor has taken no 32 action on the application, the committee shall, within 30 33 days of the expiration of the three-month period, submit any 34 recommendations and reports to the district court in the county 35 -13- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 13/ 15

H.F. 377 that originally sentenced the applicant for reconsideration 1 of the applicant’s sentence pursuant to Code section 902.4A 2 (district court reconsideration of a class “A” felony 3 sentence), created in the bill. At any time after receipt of 4 a recommendation and report from the committee, the governor 5 may direct the committee to submit any recommendations and 6 reports, within 30 days after receiving direction from the 7 governor, to the district court for reconsideration of the 8 applicant’s sentence. If the committee made a recommendation 9 against commutation and the governor denied or has not granted 10 commutation, the committee shall send a summary report to the 11 applicant within four months of its report accompanied by the 12 reasons for its recommendation against commutation. 13 The bill provides for an expedited review of class “A” 14 felony sentences when an applicant has a terminal illness. An 15 application to the governor requesting that a person’s sentence 16 of life imprisonment be commuted to a term of years already 17 served may be made by an applicant, an applicant’s family 18 member, or any other personal representative of an applicant 19 if the applicant is terminally ill with an incurable condition 20 caused by an illness or disease as detailed in the bill and the 21 conditions under which the applicant would be released do not 22 pose a threat to public safety. 23 The bill provides that upon receipt of the report and 24 recommendation of the committee, the district court, in the 25 county that originally sentenced the applicant, shall order the 26 applicant to be returned to the court, at which time the court 27 shall review its previous sentence and reaffirm the sentence 28 or substitute a sentence of commitment of the applicant to 29 the custody of the director of the department of corrections 30 for the rest of the applicant’s life with the possibility of 31 parole. The court shall conduct a hearing to consider any 32 evidence deemed appropriate by the court. The court shall base 33 its determination on the evidence of those factors detailed 34 in the bill. The court’s decision to reaffirm or substitute 35 -14- LSB 1201YH (9) 89 as/rh 14/ 15