Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Sentencing Cleanup Jury Instructions topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Rules Committee adopts amendment requiring jury instructions to include minimum time‑served information
Summary
House Bill 2105, described by the sponsor as a cleanup to 2024 felony‑sentencing modernization (House Bill 1792), was amended to change 'may' to 'shall' so judges must include minimum time‑served requirements in jury instructions; the committee adopted the amendment and reported the bill as passed.
Chairman Osborne explained an amendment to House Bill 2105 that changes the word “may” to “shall” in the section governing whether minimum time‑served requirements are included in jury instructions. Osborne said the change makes the inclusion of minimum time‑served requirements mandatory rather than discretionary and that the instruction will present the minimum time‑served as a percentage when included.
Osborne described HB2105 as a cleanup bill to House Bill 1792 (the felony‑sentencing modernization bill passed last year) and said stakeholders including the Department of Corrections, district attorneys, law enforcement, and criminal‑justice advocates had identified administrative wording and practical fixes while implementing the prior law. Osborne noted the act’s effective date was set for Jan. 1, 2026, in the earlier legislation and that HB2105 addresses needed technical fixes.
Members had no questions on the amendment; the committee adopted the amendment without objection and then reported the bill as passed. The roll call was recorded as 10 ayes and 0 nays.
The bill, as amended, will proceed for further consideration by the full chamber.
