PRINTER'S NO. 1005
No. 874 Session of 2001
INTRODUCED BY COSTA, MELLOW, MUSTO, BOSCOLA, LOGAN, ROBBINS,
PUNT, RHOADES, WOZNIAK AND STACK, MAY 11, 2001
REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, MAY 11, 2001
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the
2 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, further providing
3 sentences for offenses against infant persons.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Section 9718 of Title 42 of the Pennsylvania
7 Consolidated Statutes is amended to read:
8 § 9718. Sentences for offenses against infant persons.
9 (a) Mandatory sentence.--
10 (1) A person convicted of the following offenses when
11 the victim is under 16 years of age shall be sentenced to a
12 mandatory term of imprisonment as follows:
13 18 Pa.C.S. § 2702(a)(1) and (4) (relating to aggravated
14 assault) - not less than two years.
15 18 Pa.C.S. § 3121(1), (2), (3), (4), (5) and (6)
16 (relating to rape) - not less than five years.
17 18 Pa.C.S. § 3123 (relating to involuntary deviate sexual
18 intercourse) - not less than five years.
1 (2) A person convicted of the following offenses when
2 the victim is less than 13 years of age shall be sentenced to
3 a mandatory term of imprisonment as follows:
4 18 Pa.C.S. § 2702(a)(1) (relating to aggravated assault)
5 - not less than five years.
6 18 Pa.C.S. § 3125(1) through (6) (relating to aggravated
7 indecent assault) - not less than two and one-half years.
8 (a.1) Life imprisonment provision.--Notwithstanding any
9 other provision of law to the contrary, a person convicted of
10 the following offenses shall be sentenced to a term of life
11 imprisonment when the victim is 13 years of age or younger and
12 the offense includes serious bodily injury as defined in 18
13 Pa.C.S. § 2301 (relating to definitions):
14 18 Pa.C.S. § 3121.
15 18 Pa.C.S. § 3123.
16 (b) Eligibility for parole.--[Parole] Except as provided in
17 subsection (a.1), parole shall not be granted until the minimum
18 term of imprisonment has been served.
19 (c) Authority of court in sentencing.--There shall be no
20 authority in any court to impose on an offender to which this
21 section is applicable any lesser sentence than provided for in
22 subsections (a) and (a.1) or to place such offender on probation
23 or to suspend sentence. Nothing in this section shall prevent
24 the sentencing court from imposing a sentence greater than that
25 provided in this section. Sentencing guidelines promulgated by
26 the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing shall not supersede
27 the mandatory sentences provided in this section.
28 (d) Appeal by Commonwealth.--If a sentencing court shall
29 refuse to apply this section where applicable, the Commonwealth
30 shall have the right to appellate review of the action of the
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1 sentencing court. The appellate court shall vacate the sentence
2 and remand the case to the sentencing court for the imposition
3 of a sentence in accordance with this section if it finds that
4 the sentence was imposed in violation of this section.
5 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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