This Fiscal Note is not an official copy and should not be quoted or cited.
This Fiscal Note is not an official copy and should not be quoted or cited.
Fiscal Note - SB 0039 - Revises capital murder sentencing provisions
COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH
OVERSIGHT DIVISION
FISCAL NOTE
L.R. NO.: 0500-01
BILL NO.: SB 39
SUBJECT: Crimes and Punishment; Criminal Procedure; Mental Health; Juries; Judges
TYPE: Original
DATE: January 14, 1999
FISCAL SUMMARY
|
ESTIMATED NET EFFECT ON STATE FUNDS | |||
| FUND AFFECTED | FY 2000 | FY 2001 | FY 2002 |
| None | |||
| Total Estimated
Net Effect on All State Funds |
$0 | $0 | $0 |
|
ESTIMATED NET EFFECT ON FEDERAL FUNDS | |||
| FUND AFFECTED | FY 2000 | FY 2001 | FY 2002 |
| None | |||
| Total Estimated
Net Effect on All Federal Funds |
$0 | $0 | $0 |
|
ESTIMATED NET EFFECT ON LOCAL FUNDS | |||
| FUND AFFECTED | FY 2000 | FY 2001 | FY 2002 |
| Local Government | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Numbers within parentheses: ( ) indicate costs or losses
This fiscal note contains 3 pages.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
ASSUMPTION
Officials of the State Public Defender, Department of Public Safety - Missouri State Highway Patrol, Department of Mental Health, Office of the Attorney General, and State Courts Administrator assume this proposal would have no fiscal impact to their agencies.
In response to similar proposals from the previous legislative session, Officials of the Office of Prosecutions Services assumed that there would be no fiscal impact to their agency and minimal impact to local prosecutors.
Officials of the Department of Corrections (DOC) assume any fiscal impact incurred by their department would occur in the long-term. Currently, offenders of murder in the first degree receive a sentence of death or imprisonment for life without eligibility for probation or parole. This proposal would exempt mentally retarded first degree murder offenders from receiving a death sentence, resulting instead in a sentence of life imprisonment. Based upon historical data, the DOC averages approximately 78 commitments annually for murder in the first degree. Approximately three offenders on the average of the 78 committed tested with an IQ below 70 and DOC assumed they would meet the criteria under this proposal for being mentally retarded.
DOC officials stated that currently, not all first-degree murderers receive the death penalty. The number of offenders the court would declare as mentally retarded is unknown, but DOC officials assume it would be a small percentage. Offenders declared as ineligible for a death sentence would receive a life sentence resulting in the DOC incurring a fiscal impact after the tenth year of implementation of this proposal since the average length of incarceration for executed inmates exceeds ten years.
DOC officials would not anticipate the need for additional capital improvements or rental space. It must be noted that the cumulative effect of various new proposals, if adopted, could result in the need for additional capital improvements funding if the total number of new offenders exceeds current planned capacity.
| FISCAL IMPACT - State Government | FY 2000 | FY 2001 | FY 2002 |
| (10 Mo.) | |||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| FISCAL IMPACT - Local Government | FY 2000 | FY 2001 | FY 2002 |
| (10 Mo.) | |||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| FISCAL IMPACT - Small Business | |||
| No direct fiscal impact to small businesses would be expected as a result of this proposal. | |||
DESCRIPTION
This proposal would prohibit a judge from sentencing a defendant to death if a jury was deadlocked on the issue of punishment, and would require the sentence to be life without parole.
It would also prohibit a death sentence in first degree murder case involving a defendant determined to be mentally retarded. The court would be required to determine that the person on trial was mentally retarded prior to committing the crime. A person would be considered mentally retarded under this section if he met all three of the following: 1) in the bottom 3% of the population in intelligence (an I.Q. of 70 or below is one way to determine this); 2) had significant impairments in his behavior; and 3) if his retardation appeared before age 18.
This legislation is not federally mandated, would not duplicate any other program and would not require additional capital improvements or rental space.
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
Office of the Attorney General
State Courts Administrator
Department of Corrections
Department of Public Safety - Missouri State Highway Patrol
State Public Defender
Department of Mental Health
Office of Prosecution Services
Jeanne Jarrett, CPA
Director
January 14, 1999