Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 446 (2017GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Ivory, K.

Final action

Became Law w/o Governor Signature 3/29/2017

Outcome

Became Law w/o Governor Signature

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• requires the Board of Pardons and Parole to develop and use a list of criteria in any decision it makes regarding whether:
• an offender's sentence may be paroled or pardoned;
• restitution should be ordered;
• fines or forfeitures should be remitted; or
• the sentence should be commuted or terminated; and
• makes technical changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

SENTENCING GUIDELINES AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Ken Ivory
Senate Sponsor: 
 Daniel Hemmert
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill requires the Board of Pardons and Parole to develop a list of criteria as
rationale for its decisions regarding a person's sentence.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ requires the Board of Pardons and Parole to develop and use a list of criteria in any
decision it makes regarding whether:
• an offender's sentence may be paroled or pardoned;
• restitution should be ordered;
• fines or forfeitures should be remitted; or
• the sentence should be commuted or terminated; and
▸ makes technical changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
77-27-5
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2016, Chapter 223
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
77-27-5
 is amended to read:
77-27-5.
Board of Pardons and Parole authority.
(1) (a) The Board of Pardons and Parole shall determine by majority decision when and
under what conditions, subject to this chapter and other laws of the state, persons committed to
serve sentences in class A misdemeanor cases at penal or correctional facilities which are under
the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections, and all felony cases except treason or
impeachment or as otherwise limited by law, may be released upon parole, pardoned, ordered
to pay restitution, or have their fines, forfeitures, or restitution remitted, or their sentences
commuted or terminated.
(b) The board may sit together or in panels to conduct hearings. The chair shall
appoint members to the panels in any combination and in accordance with rules promulgated
by the board, except in hearings involving commutation and pardons. The chair may
participate on any panel and when doing so is chair of the panel. The chair of the board may
designate the chair for any other panel.
(c) No restitution may be ordered, no fine, forfeiture, or restitution remitted, no parole,
pardon, or commutation granted or sentence terminated, except after a full hearing before the
board or the board's appointed examiner in open session. Any action taken under this
subsection other than by a majority of the board shall be affirmed by a majority of the board.
(d) A commutation or pardon may be granted only after a full hearing before the board.
(e) The board may determine restitution as provided in Section 
77-27-6
 and Subsection
77-38a-302
(5)(d)(iii)(A).
(2) (a) In the case of original parole grant hearings, rehearings, and parole revocation
hearings, timely prior notice of the time and location of the hearing shall be given to the
defendant, the county or district attorney's office responsible for prosecution of the case, the
sentencing court, law enforcement officials responsible for the defendant's arrest and
conviction, and whenever possible, the victim or the victim's family.
(b) Notice to the victim, [
his
] 
the victim's
 representative, or [
his
] 
the victim's
 family
shall include information provided in Section 
77-27-9.5
, and any related rules made by the
board under that section. This information shall be provided in terms that are reasonable for
the lay person to understand.
(3) Decisions of the board in cases involving paroles, pardons, commutations or
terminations of sentence, restitution, or remission of fines or forfeitures are final and are not
subject to judicial review. Nothing in this section prevents the obtaining or enforcement of a
civil judgment, including restitution as provided in Section 
77-27-6
.
(4) This chapter may not be construed as a denial of or limitation of the governor's
power to grant respite or reprieves in all cases of convictions for offenses against the state,
except treason or conviction on impeachment. However, respites or reprieves may not extend
beyond the next session of the Board of Pardons and Parole and the board, at that session, shall
continue or terminate the respite or reprieve, or it may commute the punishment, or pardon the
offense as provided. In the case of conviction for treason, the governor may suspend execution
of the sentence until the case is reported to the Legislature at its next session. The Legislature
shall then either pardon or commute the sentence, or direct its execution.
(5) In determining when, where, and under what conditions offenders serving sentences
may be paroled, pardoned, have restitution ordered, or have their fines or forfeitures remitted,
or their sentences commuted or terminated, the board shall
:
(a)
 consider whether the persons have made or are prepared to make restitution as
ascertained in accordance with the standards and procedures of Section 
77-38a-302
, as a
condition of any parole, pardon, remission of fines or forfeitures, or commutation or
termination of sentence[
.
]
; and
(b) develop and use a list of criteria for making determinations under this Subsection
(5).
(6) In determining whether parole may be terminated, the board shall consider the
offense committed by the parolee, the parole period as provided in Section 
76-3-202
, and in
accordance with Section 
77-27-13
.
Legislative Review Note
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel