Writ of actual innocence; petition by convicted person. (HB974)

Introduced By

Progress

✓	Introduced
✓	Passed Committee
✓	Passed House
✓	Passed Senate
☐	Signed by Governor
☐	Became Law

Description

Petition for writ of actual innocence. Provides that a person who was convicted of a felony or who was adjudicated delinquent by a circuit court of an offense that would be a felony if committed by an adult may petition for a writ of actual innocence based on biological evidence or nonbiological evidence regardless of the type of plea he entered at trial. Under current law, such person may petition for a writ based on biological evidence if he entered a plea of not guilty, and any person, regardless of the type of plea he entered at trial, may petition for such writ if he is sentenced to death or convicted or adjudicated delinquent of murder or a felony for which the maximum punishment is imprisonment for life. The bill also (i) allows a writ of actual innocence based on nonbiological evidence to be granted if scientific testing of previously untested evidence, regardless of whether such evidence was available or known at the time of conviction, proves that no trier of fact would have found proof of guilt of the person petitioning for the writ, provided that the testing procedure was not available at the time of conviction, and (ii) eliminates the provision that limits a petitioner to only one writ of actual innocence based on nonbiological evidence for any conviction. The bill provides that the petitioner must prove the allegations supporting either type of writ of actual innocence by a preponderance of the evidence. Currently, the petitioner must prove such allegations by clear and convincing evidence. Finally, the bill clarifies that the Attorney General may join a petition for a writ of actual innocence filed in connection with an adjudication of delinquency. Read the Bill »

Status

02/24/2020: Passed the Senate

History

Date	Action
01/07/2020	Committee
01/07/2020	Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/08/20 20104714D
01/07/2020	Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
02/02/2020	Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
02/03/2020	Subcommittee recommends reporting (6-Y 2-N)
02/05/2020	Reported from Courts of Justice (16-Y 6-N) (see vote tally)
02/05/2020	Referred to Committee on Appropriations
02/07/2020	Assigned App. sub: Transportation & Public Safety
02/07/2020	Subcommittee recommends reporting (5-Y 3-N)
02/07/2020	Reported from Appropriations (16-Y 6-N) (see vote tally)
02/09/2020	Read first time
02/10/2020	Impact statement from DPB (HB974)
02/10/2020	Read second time and engrossed
02/11/2020	Read third time and passed House (63-Y 37-N)
02/11/2020	VOTE: Passage (63-Y 37-N) (see vote tally)
02/12/2020	Constitutional reading dispensed
02/12/2020	Referred to Committee on the Judiciary
02/19/2020	Reported from Judiciary with amendment (7-Y 4-N) (see vote tally)
02/21/2020	Constitutional reading dispensed (32-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/24/2020	Read third time
02/24/2020	Reading of amendment waived
02/24/2020	Committee amendment agreed to
02/24/2020	Engrossed by Senate as amended
02/24/2020	Passed Senate with amendment (27-Y 13-N) (see vote tally)
02/26/2020	VOTE: Adoption (0-Y 97-N)
02/26/2020	Placed on Calendar
02/26/2020	Senate amendment rejected by House (0-Y 97-N)