SB 961 - This act increases the sentence for a persistent sexual offender to death or life imprisonment without eligibility for probation or parole. A "persistent sexual offender" is an offender who has been convicted at least twice of any of the following: 1) forcible rape; 2) forcible sodomy; 3) statutory rape; and 4) statutory sodomy.

Procedures are established for trials where the death penalty is sought which are similar to current procedures applied in first degree murder cases.

The following aggravating factors may be considered by the jury in deciding whether to impose the death penalty: 1) The offender has a prior history of committing violent crimes; 2) The offense involved torture or depravity; 3) The offender committed the crime after escaping police custody; 4) A weapon was used and whether serious physical injury was inflicted on the victim; and 5) The victim of the offense was under age thirteen.

The following mitigating factors may be considered by the jury in deciding whether to impose the death penalty: 1) The offender has no significant criminal history other than the prior sexual offense; 2) The offender was under the influence of extreme mental disturbance at the time of the offense; 3) The offender acted under duress; 4) The offender lacked capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct; and 5) The age of the offender at the time he committed the offense.
JAMES KLAHR