LD 893
pg. 1
LD 893 Title Page An Act To Change Mandatory Minimum Sentences in Certain Cases Page 2 of 5
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LR 1163
Item 1

 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:

 
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 2003, c. 232, §1,
is repealed.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.

 
To deviate from the mandatory minimum sentence, the court shall
consider all relevant factors, including:

 
A.__The nature of the criminal act;

 
B.__Any recommendations of the victim, 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


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