Bill Giving Teen Killers Chance At Parole Advances In Senate

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Under pressure from a Supreme Court ruling, Louisiana senators are advancing a proposal that would give teenage murderers a chance at parole after serving 35 years of a life sentence.

In January, the high court extended its ruling striking down automatic life terms for crimes committed by people under the age of 18 to include those convicted long ago.

A bill from Sen. Danny Martiny, a Kenner Republican, aims to conform Louisiana law to comply with that ruling, allowing those currently serving life sentences to be eligible for a parole hearing.

Murder victims' family members opposed the proposal, providing emotional testimony Tuesday to a Senate judiciary committee. Senators said Louisiana must comply with the Supreme Court ruling and sent the bill to the full Senate.

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