Sec. 1. 17-A MRSA §1251, as amended by PL 1999, c. 536, §1, is further amended to read:

§1251. Imprisonment for murder

A person convicted of the crime of murder shall must be sentenced to imprisonment for life or for any term of years that is not less than 25 20. The sentence of the court shall must specify the length of the sentence to be served and shall commit the person to the Department of Corrections.

In setting the length of imprisonment, if the victim is a child who had not in fact attained the age of 6 years at the time the crime was committed, a court shall assign special weight to this objective fact in determining the basic sentence in the first step of the sentencing process. The court shall assign special weight to any subjective victim impact in determining the final sentence in the 2nd and final step in the sentencing process. Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to restrict a court in setting the length of imprisonment from considering the age of the victim in other circumstances when relevant.

Sec. 2. 17-A MRSA §1252, sub-§5-A, as amended by PL 2001, c. 383, §151 and affected by §156, is repealed.

Sec. 3. 17-A MRSA §1252, sub-§9 is enacted to read:

9.__Whenever a mandatory minimum fine or period of imprisonment is required by law, the mandatory minimum sentence may be suspended if imposition of the mandatory minimum sentence would create substantial injustice and if the deviation from the mandatory minimum sentence neither diminishes the gravity of the offense nor adversely affects the safety of the public and would not frustrate the general purposes of sentencing set forth in section 1151.__In deviating from the mandatory minimum sentence, the presiding justice shall consider all relevant factors, including:

A.__The nature of the criminal act;

B.__The recommendations of the victim or the victim's family and the prosecuting attorney;

C.__The defendant's prospects for rehabilitation, credible demonstration of remorse and a comprehension of the consequences of the defendant's actions; and