The House Committee on Courts and Criminal Code heard HB 1432 on death sentence and intellectual disabilities authored by Rep. Bascom. The bill prohibits the State from seeking the death penalty against a defendant if a court determines at any time before trial that the defendant has an intellectual disability. (Under current law, the court must make this determination at a specified pretrial hearing.)
The Committee amended the bill by consent to establish a procedure to determine if the defendant in a capital case has an intellectual disability automatically upon notice of the State of its intent to seek the death penalty.
The Indiana Catholic Conference and Ark of Indiana testified in support of the bill. The Indiana Public Defender Council testified but remained neutral.
The amended bill passed 13-0.
Read the bill at: https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2026/bills/house/1432/