A Slew of Tough-on-Crime Bills Passed During Louisiana Special Session

An eleven day special legislative session in Baton Rouge culminated in the passage of a slew of tough-on-crime policies, in Louisiana’s Republican-dominated legislature. Those policies include an expansion of execution methods, along with charging 17-year-olds as adults and eliminating parole for most people who are jailed in the future. But Democrats fear the legislation will do little beyond exacerbating Louisiana’s ailing and crowded prison system.
Regarding the death penalty, the Legislature passed a bill that adds the use of nitrogen gas and electrocution as methods to carry out the death penalty. There are currently 58 people sitting on Louisiana’s death row, although there has not been an execution in 14 years.
Lawmakers passed a bill that will treat all 17-year-olds charged with crimes, including misdemeanors, as adults. The measure is a rollback of the state’s “Raise the Age” law. Legislators also passed a law making juveniles criminal records public if they are violent crimes.
Lawmakers also approved a bill that effectively eliminates parole for anyone convicted after August 1, with few exceptions — including groups for whom it is constitutionally required, such as those who were sentenced to life terms as juveniles. The legislature passed a bill that also reduces the amount of “good time credit” that prisoners can accumulate to shave time off their sentence.
Other bills propose harsher penalties for certain crimes. For example, the minimum sentence for a carjacking conviction will increase from two years to five. If a carjacking results in bodily injury, the offender will serve 20 to 30 years.
Another measure toughens fentanyl-related penalties, specifically in cases where people distribute the drug in a way that appeals to children, such as the shape, color, taste, or design of packaging. The crime would be punishable by a minimum of 25 years in jail.
A bill allowing residents 18 and older to carry a concealed handgun without a permit received final approval on Wednesday.
Legislators also passed a bill providing a level of immunity from civil liability for someone who holds a concealed carry permit and uses their firearm to shoot a person in self-defense.
Lawmakers will next return to the capitol March 11 for their three-month-long regular session, in which they can take up additional crime-related bills.