JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri lawmakers have voted to create new minimum sentences for minors convicted of first-degree murder. The House voted 145-1 Thursday to approve the new guidelines, and the Senate voted 32-0 to send them to the governor.
The legislation would bring Missouri into line with a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that mandatory life sentences for minors were unconstitutional.
Rep. Robert Cornejo said that left Missouri without any valid sentencing options for minors guilty of first-degree murder, so prosecutors can currently only charge minors with second-degree murder.
The new guidelines would add life with parole and 30-40 years in prison to the sentences prosecutors could seek. Life without parole would remain an option if prosecutors prove additional factors, such as torture of the victim.