Delaware 153rd General Assembly Status: Introduced 1 D cosponsors

SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1 — Convicted Persons/Forensic Information/Remedy

Last action — Lieu/Substituted

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  1. 1
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been introduced in the Senate. Introduced May 07, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee referral and hearing.

Prognosis

Not enough signal yet

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

Not enough signal yet to read this bill's trajectory — we surface a likelihood only once there's real movement (stage, sponsorship, committee, or votes) to point to.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

In plain language

This Act allows convicted persons to seek relief based on new forensic evidence.

The Act provides a process for convicted individuals to apply for relief if new forensic evidence, unavailable during their trial, could potentially change the trial outcome. The court must hold a hearing within 180 days of the application.

What this means for you
  • Workers: This means that individuals previously convicted may have new opportunities for justice if new evidence emerges.

Summary

This Act provides a remedy for convicted persons relating to changes in forensic scientific or technical information. Specifically, a convicted person may apply to the Superior Court for relief if certain forensic scientific information was not available to be offered by the convicted person prior to the conviction or if it undermines forensic scientific evidence that was presented at trial. The court must grant relief if (1) the convicted person files an application asserting that the relevant forensic evidence is currently available and was not ascertainable through the exercise of reasonable diligence by the convicted person before or during trial or before the date of entry of a plea, and (2) the court determines that, had the evidence been presented at a trial, there is a reasonable likelihood that the result at trial would have been different or that the convicted person would not have been convicted. Once a petition for relief is filed, the Superior Court shall set a hearing on the petition, not later than 180 days after the petition was filed, and notify the petitioner and the Department of Justice. The Department of Justice may file a response to the petition within 90 days after its filing. After the hearing, if the court determines that the petitioner has failed to make a prima facie showing that the petitioner is entitled to relief, the court will dismiss the petition in a written opinion. However, if the court determines that the petitioner has made a prima facie showing that the petitioner is entitled to relief, the court shall grant the petitioner discovery on matters relating to the forensic evidence used to obtain the conviction or sentence at issue and hold another hearing to determine whether there is a reasonable likelihood that, had the new evidence been presented at a trial, the convicted person would not have been convicted. If so, the court shall vacate the petitioner's conviction and grant the petitioner's motion for a new trial. For purposes of the Act, "convicted person" means a person who has received a verdict of guilty by the trier of fact, entered a plea of guilty or a plea of nolo contendere that was accepted by the court, or received a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. This Act is a substitute for and differs from SB 58 in that it clarifies that relevant forensic scientific evidence that may provide a basis for relief is not limited to evidence presented at trial, but rather includes evidence that was presented before trial, at trial, or before the date of entry of a plea. In addition, this Act differs from SB 58 in that it clarifies that the court must grant relief if the relevant criteria are satisfied. Finally, this Act differs from SB 58 in that it requires the court to hear a claim within 180 days after the petition was filed, rather than 90 days, and in that it allows the Department of Justice 90 days to respond to a petition, rather than 30 days.

Bill Text

We don't have the full text on file for this bill yet.

Read SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1 on the official Delaware source →

Action History

  1. Lieu/Substituted

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 61 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (61)

61 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 61 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety civil-rights
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1 do?
This Act provides a remedy for convicted persons relating to changes in forensic scientific or technical information. Specifically, a convicted person may apply to the Superior Court for relief if certain forensic scientific information was not available to be offered by the convicted person prior to the conviction or if it undermines forensic scientific evidence that was presented at trial. The court must grant relief if (1) the convicted person files an application asserting that the relevant forensic evidence is currently available and was not ascertainable through the exercise of reasonable diligence by the convicted person before or during trial or before the date of entry of a plea, and (2) the court determines that, had the evidence been presented at a trial, there is a reasonable likelihood that the result at trial would have been different or that the convicted person would not have been convicted. Once a petition for relief is filed, the Superior Court shall set a hearing on the petition, not later than 180 days after the petition was filed, and notify the petitioner and the Department of Justice. The Department of Justice may file a response to the petition within 90 days after its filing. After the hearing, if the court determines that the petitioner has failed to make a prima facie showing that the petitioner is entitled to relief, the court will dismiss the petition in a written opinion. However, if the court determines that the petitioner has made a prima facie showing that the petitioner is entitled to relief, the court shall grant the petitioner discovery on matters relating to the forensic evidence used to obtain the conviction or sentence at issue and hold another hearing to determine whether there is a reasonable likelihood that, had the new evidence been presented at a trial, the convicted person would not have been convicted. If so, the court shall vacate the petitioner's conviction and grant the petitioner's motion for a new trial. For purposes of the Act, "convicted person" means a person who has received a verdict of guilty by the trier of fact, entered a plea of guilty or a plea of nolo contendere that was accepted by the court, or received a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. This Act is a substitute for and differs from SB 58 in that it clarifies that relevant forensic scientific evidence that may provide a basis for relief is not limited to evidence presented at trial, but rather includes evidence that was presented before trial, at trial, or before the date of entry of a plea. In addition, this Act differs from SB 58 in that it clarifies that the court must grant relief if the relevant criteria are satisfied. Finally, this Act differs from SB 58 in that it requires the court to hear a claim within 180 days after the petition was filed, rather than 90 days, and in that it allows the Department of Justice 90 days to respond to a petition, rather than 30 days.
Who sponsors SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1?
SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1 is sponsored by Kyra L. Hoffner (Democratic).
What is the current status of SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1?
This bill has been introduced in the Senate. Introduced May 07, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track SS 1 for SB 58 -SA 1?
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