The Senate Judiciary Committee heard Sen. Merritt’s and Sen. Ruckelhaus’ SB 155 on capital punishment and serious mental illness. This bill establishes a procedure to determine whether a defendant charged with or convicted of murder is an individual with a serious mental illness. It also prohibits the imposition of the death penalty on a defendant found to be an individual with a serious mental illness.
The bill was amended by consent to change the application from retroactive to those that commit an offense after June 30, 2017. Representatives from the Indiana State Bar Association Criminal Justice Section, Mental Health America, Indiana Catholic Conference, and Military Veterans Coalition of Indiana testified in favor of the bill. The Attorney General’s Office, the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council and the Boone County Prosecutor raised concerns regarding the procedures in the bill. The chair held the bill for vote.
Read the bill at: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2017/bills/senate/155