Sentencing

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not provide specific details on how many inmates will be affected or the exact cost savings.

Changes to Parole Eligibility for First Degree Murder Convictions

This bill changes Tennessee's laws to allow certain people convicted of first degree murder between July 1, 1995, and June 30, 2020, who are sentenced to life in prison, to be eligible for parole after serving 25 years with the possibility of reducing their sentence by up to 35 years based on good behavior and participation in rehabilitation programs.

What This Bill Does

• Allows people convicted of first degree murder between July 1, 1995, and June 30, 2020, who are sentenced to life in prison, to be eligible for parole after serving 25 years.
• Reduces the inmate's parole eligibility date by up to 35 years if they avoid violent disciplinary infractions, drug-related infractions, complete educational programs, and participate in rehabilitation classes.
• Requires the Department of Correction to review records of inmates who meet these criteria and adjust their parole dates accordingly.
• Ensures that all sentences run concurrently with the life sentence for those meeting the criteria and granted parole.
• Sets a maximum limit of 40 years for serving a life sentence if parole is not granted.

Who It Names or Affects

• People convicted of first degree murder between July 1, 1995, and June 30, 2020, who are sentenced to life in prison.
• The Tennessee Department of Correction and the Board of Parole.

Terms To Know

Class A violent disciplinary infraction

Serious offenses such as assault on staff or another inmate with a weapon, threatening behavior, murder, attempted murder, rape, or attempted rape.

Drug-related disciplinary infraction

Possession or usage of unauthorized Schedule I or II controlled substances, and selling or distributing these drugs.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify the exact number of inmates who will be affected.
• It is unclear how much cost savings the state may realize from this change in sentencing laws.

Official Summary Text

Present law prohibits release eligibility for a person committing first degree murder, on or after July 1, 1995, and receiving a sentence of imprisonment for life. This bill establishes that a person committing first degree murder on or after July 1, 19
95, and before July 1, 2020, and receiving a sentence of imprisonment for life is eligible for parole after serving 25 calendar years if the person fulfills the following criteria
,
with the maximum sentence reduction not to exceed
3
5 years:



10 years must be deducted from the inmate's
parole
eligibility date for each sustained period of 10 consecutive years without a Class A violent disciplinary infraction. A Class A violent disciplinary infraction is either (i) assault on staff with or without a weapon; (ii) assault on another offender with or without a weapon; (iii) threatening staff or another offender; (iv) murder or attempted murder of staff or another offender;
and
(v) rape or attempted rape of staff or another offender. If a Class A violent disciplinary infraction occurs after a 10-year period of good conduct, then the previously accrued credit for avoiding a Class A violent disciplinary infraction is forfeited, and a new 10-year period of good conduct must be completed to regain eligibility for this credit.



10 years must be deducted from the inmate's
parole
eligibility date for each sustained period of 10 consecutive years without a drug-related disciplinary infraction. A drug-related disciplinary infraction is (i) possession or us
age
of an unauthorized Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance or (ii) sale or distribution of a Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance. Schedule I drugs generally include substances with high abuse potential and no accepted medical use, including, for example, heroin. Schedule II drugs generally include substances with high abuse potential, accepted medical uses, and severe dependence risk, including, for example, Oxycodone. If a drug-related disciplinary infraction occurs after a 10-year period of being drug-free, then any previously accrued credit for avoiding a drug-related disciplinary infraction is forfeited, and a new 10-year period of being drug-free must be completed to regain eligibility for this credit.



10 years must be deducted from the inmate's
parole
eligibility date upon the successful completion of an accredited postsecondary education program and the attainment of an associate degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree from an institution recognized by this state.



Five
years must be deducted from the inmate's
parole
eligibility date upon the successful completion of the following programs offered by the department of correction or
its
accredited partners: (i) a career exploration class; (ii) a victim impact class; (iii) cognitive behavior therapy or a similar cognitive restructuring program; (iv) a family unification class; and (v) an early intervention class, if th
e
class is deemed appropriate by the department.

This bill prohibits the credits earned in the above-described ways from running parallel to any good behavior or program credits awarded in other programs not described
in this bill
. Credits earned through the methods described above must be specifically applied toward the calculation of parole eligibility under this bill.

This bill's effect is retroactive and applies to any person sentenced to imprisonment for
life for
the offense of first degree murder committed on or after July 1, 1995, and before July 1, 2020
,
who, as of July 1, 2026, has already met one or more of the
above-outlined criteria.
The department is required to review the records of all
such
inmates and adjust the inmate's parole eligibility dates accordingly.

If a person has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the offense of first degree murder committed on or after July 1, 1995, and before July 1, 2020, and the person also has other sentences running consecutively, then this bill requires that all of the
person's sentences must be deemed to run concurrent to the life sentence if the person meets the criteria outlined above and is granted parole.

Upon an inmate's
fulfillment
of
the criteria
listed above, this bill requires the board of parole to grant the inmate parole. The board has no discretion to deny parole based on the seriousness of the crime or a perceived risk of nonconformity to release conditions.

This bill provides that
a sentence of imprisonment for life automatically expires after the person has served 4
0
calendar years. An individual convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to imprisonment for life must not remain incarcerated for more than 40 years if parole has not been granted.

Current Bill Text

SENATE BILL 2343
By Lamar

HOUSE BILL 2229
By Dixie
HB2229
011364
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39,
Chapter 13 and Title 40, Chapter 35, relative to
release eligibility of persons convicted of first
degree murder.

WHEREAS, by linking parole eligibility to concrete achievements in conduct and
rehabilitation, inmates are encouraged to actively participate in their own reformation and
contribute to a safer prison environment; and
WHEREAS, creating a strong incentive for inmates to engage in educational programs
and therapeutic interventions leads to increased skills and a greater likelihood of successful
reintegration into society; and
WHEREAS, by increasing the number of inmates who become eligible for parole, the
State may realize significant cost savings associated with long-term incarceration; and
WHEREAS, many other states have already revisited their sentencing laws in light of the
changing fiscal landscape and a growing understanding of effective correctional practices; and
WHEREAS, this proposed legislation will affect a small subset of the 1,304 inmates
within the Tennessee Department of Correction with a sentence of imprisonment for life; and
WHEREAS, rehabilitation and re-entry are included within the mission of the Tennessee
Department of Correction; now, therefore,
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 40-35-501(h)(2), is amended by
deleting "There shall be no release eligibility" and substituting "Except as provided in subsection
(hh), there shall be no release eligibility".
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 40-35-501, is amended by adding
the following as new subsections:

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(hh)
(1) Notwithstanding subdivision (h)(2) or another law to the contrary, a
person committing first degree murder, on or after July 1, 1995, and before July
1, 2020, and receiving a sentence of imprisonment for life is eligible for parole
after serving twenty-five (25) calendar years if the person fulfills the following
criteria with the maximum reduction not to exceed thirty-five (35) years:
(A) Ten (10) years must be deducted from the inmate's parole
eligibility date for each sustained period of ten (10) consecutive years
without a Class A violent disciplinary infraction. If a Class A violent
disciplinary infraction occurs after a ten-year period of good conduct, then
any previously accrued credit under this subdivision (hh)(1)(A) is forfeited,
and a new ten-year period of good conduct must be completed to regain
eligibility for this credit;
(B) Ten (10) years must be deducted from the inmate's parole
eligibility date for each sustained period of ten (10) consecutive years
without a drug-related disciplinary infraction. If a drug-related disciplinary
infraction occurs after a ten-year period of being drug-free, then any
previously accrued credit under this subdivision (hh)(1)(B) is forfeited, and
a new ten-year period of being drug-free must be completed to regain
eligibility for this credit;
(C) Ten (10) years must be deducted from the inmate's parole
eligibility date upon the successful completion of an accredited
postsecondary education program and the attainment of an associate
degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree from an institution
recognized by the state of Tennessee, including, but not limited to,

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programs offered within correctional facilities by institutions such as
Dyersburg State Community College, Rhodes College, or the University
of Memphis; and
(D) Five (5) years must be deducted from the inmate's parole
eligibility date upon the successful completion of all of the following
programs offered by the Tennessee department of correction or its
accredited partners:
(i) A career exploration class;
(ii) A victim impact class;
(iii) Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) or a similar cognitive
restructuring program;
(iv) A family unification class; and
(v) An early intervention class, if the class is deemed
appropriate by the department.
(2) As used in this subsection (hh):
(A) "Class A violent disciplinary infractions" means:
(i) Assault on staff with or without a weapon;
(ii) Assault on another offender with or without a weapon;
(iii) Threatening staff or another offender;
(iv) Murder or attempted murder of staff or another
offender; and
(v) Rape or attempted rape of staff or another offender;
and
(B) "Drug-related disciplinary infractions" means:

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(i) Possession or usage of an unauthorized Schedule 1 or
Schedule II controlled substance; and
(ii) Selling or distribution of an unauthorized Schedule I or
Schedule II controlled substance.
(3) The credits earned under this subsection (hh) run parallel to any good
behavior or program credits awarded pursuant to other provisions of this title and
must be specifically applied toward the calculation of parole eligibility under this
subsection (hh).
(4) This subsection (hh) is retroactive and applies to any person
sentenced to imprisonment for life for the offense of first-degree murder
committed on or after July 1, 1995, and before July 1, 2020, who, as of July 1,
2026, has already met one (1) or more of the criteria outlined in subdivision
(hh)(1). The department of correction shall review the records of all such
inmates and adjust the inmate's parole eligibility dates accordingly.
(5) If a person has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the offense of
first degree murder committed on or after July 1, 1995, and before July 1, 2020,
and the person also has other sentences running consecutively, then all of the
person's sentences must be deemed to run concurrent to the life sentence if the
person meets the criteria outlined in subdivision (hh)(1) and is granted parole.
(6) Notwithstanding this section or another law to the contrary, upon an
inmate's fulfillment of all criteria outlined in this subsection (hh), the board of
parole shall grant the inmate parole. The board has no discretion to deny parole
based on the seriousness of the crime or a perceived risk of nonconformity to
release conditions.

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(ii) Notwithstanding this section or another law to the contrary, a sentence of
imprisonment for life automatically expires after the person has served forty (40)
calendar years. An individual convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to
imprisonment for life must not remain incarcerated for more than forty (40) years if
parole has not been granted.
SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2026, the public welfare requiring it.