SB 94 — Repeal Death Penalty.

FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA FebSESSION 13, 2025 S.B.S 1 SENATE BILL 94 Short Title:

94 SESSION 2025 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS45048-ML-37 Short Title:

Rules and Operations of the Senate February 17, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO REPEAL THE DEATH PENALTY AND TO PROVIDE THAT ALL CURRENT PRISONERS SENTENCED TO DEATH SHALL BE RESENTENCED TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT WITHOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE.

… (5) Recruiting qualified members of the private bar who are willing to provide representation in State and federal death penaltypenaltypostconviction postconviction proceedings." SECTION 3.

14-288.21, poison, lying in wait, imprisonment, *DRS45048-ML-37**S94-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 starving, torture, or by any other kind of willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing, or which shall be committed in the perpetration or attempted perpetration of any arson, rape or a sex offense, robbery, kidnapping, burglary, or other felony committed or attempted with the use of a deadlydeadlyweapon weapon shall be deemed to be murder in the first degree, a Class A felony, and anyanyperson person who commits such murder shall be punished with death or imprisonment in the State's prison for life without parole as the court shall determine pursuant to G.S.

(6) Notwithstanding the retention requirements in subdivisions (1) through (5) of this subsection, at any time after collection and prior to or at the time of disposition of the case at the trial court level, if the evidence collected as part of the criminal investigation is of a size, bulk, or physical character as to render retention impracticable or should be returned to its rightful owner, the State maymaypetition petitionthethe court for retention of samples of the biological evidence in lieu of the actual physical evidence.

After giving any defendant charged in connection with the case an opportunity to be heard, the court may order that the collecting agency take reasonable measures to remove or preserve for retention portions of evidence likely to contain biological evidence related to the offense through cuttings, swabs, or other means consistent with Crime Laboratoryminimum guidelinesguidelinesin inaquantitysufficient aquantityto sufficientto permit DNAtesting before returning or disposing of the evidence." SECTION 10.

The arrest of a person may be lawfully made also by any peace officer or a private person, without a warrant, upon reasonable information that the accused stands charged in the courts of a state with a crime punishable by death or imprisonment for a term exceeding one year, but when so arrested the accused must be taken before a judge or magistrate with all practicable Page 2 DRS45048-ML-37Senate Bill 94-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 speed, and complaint must be made against him under oath setting forth the ground for the arrest as in G.S.

anyanyminimum minimum term of imprisonment in that range is permitted unless the court finds pursuant to G.S.

PRIOR RECORD LEVEL I II III IV V VI DRS45048-ML-37Senate Bill 94-First Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 0-1 Pt 2-5 Pts 6-9 Pts 10-13 Pts 14-17 Pts 18+ Pts A Life Imprisonment With Parole or Without Parole, or Death, as Established by Statute A A A A A A DISPOSITION 240-300 276-345 317-397 365-456 Life Imprisonment Aggravated Without Parole B1 192-240 221-276 254-317 292-365 336-420 386-483 PRESUMPTIVE 144-192 166-221 190-254 219-292 252-336 290-386 Mitigated A A A A A A DISPOSITION 157-196 180-225 207-258 238-297 273-342 314-393 Aggravated B2 125-157 144-180 165-207 190-238 219-273 251-314 PRESUMPTIVE 94-125 108-144 124-165 143-190 164-219 189-251 Mitigated A A A A A A DISPOSITION 73-92 83-104 96-120 110-138 127-159 146-182 Aggravated C 58-73 67-83 77-96 88-110 101-127 117-146 PRESUMPTIVE 44-58 50-67 58-77 66-88 76-101 87-117 Mitigated A A A A A A DISPOSITION 64-80 73-92 84-105 97-121 111-139 128-160 Aggravated D 51-64 59-73 67-84 78-97 89-111 103-128 PRESUMPTIVE 38-51 44-59 51-67 58-78 67-89 77-103 Mitigated I/A I/A A A A A DISPOSITION 25-31 29-36 33-41 38-48 44-55 50-63 Aggravated E 20-25 23-29 26-33 30-38 35-44 40-50 PRESUMPTIVE 15-20 17-23 20-26 23-30 26-35 30-40 Mitigated I/A I/A I/A A A A DISPOSITION 16-20 19-23 21-27 25-31 28-36 33-41 Aggravated F 13-16 15-19 17-21 20-25 23-28 26-33 PRESUMPTIVE 10-13 11-15 13-17 15-20 17-23 20-26 Mitigated I/A I/A I/A I/A A A DISPOSITION 13-16 14-18 17-21 19-24 22-27 25-31 Aggravated G 10-13 12-14 13-17 15-19 17-22 20-25 PRESUMPTIVE 8-10 9-12 10-13 11-15 13-17 15-20 Mitigated C/I/A I/A I/A I/A I/A A DISPOSITION 6-8 8-10 10-12 11-14 15-19 20-25 Aggravated H 5-6 6-8 8-10 9-11 12-15 16-20 PRESUMPTIVE 4-5 4-6 6-8 7-9 9-12 12-16 Mitigated C C/I I I/A I/A I/A DISPOSITION 6-8 6-8 6-8 8-10 9-11 10-12 Aggravated I 4-6 4-6 5-6 6-8 7-9 8-10 PRESUMPTIVE 3-4 3-4 4-5 4-6 5-7 6-8 Mitigated" SECTION 15.

32(b) and the time for filing a petition for writ of Page 4 DRS45048-ML-37Senate Bill 94-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 certiorari to the United States Supreme Court has expired without a petition being filed;

(3) TheUnitedStatesTheUnited SupremeCourtdeniedatimelyStates petitionSupremeCourtdeniedatimelypetitionforwrit forwrit ofcertiorari of the decision on direct appeal by the Supreme Court of North Carolina;

(4) Following the denial of discretionary review by the Supreme Court of North Carolina, the United States Supreme Court denied a timelytimelypetition petition for writ of certiorari seeking review of the decision on direct appeal by the North Carolina Court of Appeals;

… (c) Notwithstanding the time limitations herein, a defendant at anyanytime time after verdict may bybyamotion amotion for appropriaterelief, raisethegroundraisethe ground that evidenceis available which was unknown or unavailable to the defendant at the time of trial, which could not with due diligence have been discovered or made available at that time, including recanted testimony, and which has a direct and material bearing upon the defendant's eligibility for the death penaltypenaltyor or the defendant's guilt or innocence.

(1) The defendant establishes that more likely than not, but for the error, no reasonablefact finderwouldhavefoundthedefendantguiltyoftheunderlyingfinderwouldhavefoundthedefendant guiltyoftheunderlying offense;

Offering or undertaking to prevent or diagnose, correct, prescribe for, administer to, or treat in any manner or by any means, methods, or devices anyanydisease, disease, illness, pain, wound, fracture, infirmity, defect, or abnormal physical or mental condition of anyanyindividual, individual, including the management of pregnancy or parturition.

DRS45048-ML-37Senate Bill 94-First Edition Page 5 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 d.

and theadministrationofnursingprograms andnursingandnursingservices. services.

Upon hearing the petition, the court shall order that the death sentence imposed bybythe the judgment be vacated and the defendant resentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

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