02/28/1994 01:15 PM House JUD

  HB 334 - SENTENCING; 3RD SERIOUS FELONY OFFENDER                             
                                                                               
  Number 619                                                                   
                                                                               
  REP. CON BUNDE, Prime Sponsor of  HB 334, testified that the                 
  intent of  this  legislation is  to  deal with  the  violent                 
  predator in  our  society.   He  further  stated  that  this                 
  legislation would not affect a great deal of people, perhaps                 
  six per year.  Rep. Bunde indicated that there was a  CS for                 
  HB 334 and asked the committee if they could address the CS.                 
                                                                               
  Number 635                                                                   
                                                                               
  REP. GREEN moved that the committee adopt the CS for  HB 334                 
  as the document of record.                                                   
                                                                               
  Number 636                                                                   
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN PORTER moved the CS as being before the committee.                  
                                                                               
  Number 639                                                                   
                                                                               
  REP. BUNDE  indicated that the  CS addresses several  of the                 
  problems   raised   by   the   Department   of   Law;  i.e.,                 
  prosecutorial discretion, constitutional questions, and some                 
  problems  that have  been addressed  in other  states.   The                 
  point he wanted to make was that the intent of the  bill was                 
  not to  make someone  who gets  into trouble  with the  IRS,                 
  defaces something in  the post office,  etc., it is not  the                 
  intent  to put them  in jail for  life.  What  he is talking                 
  about  here  is  violent  offenders  who are  what  we  call                 
  predators  and  repeat  offenders who  are  causing  a large                 
  portion of the crime and endangering society.                                
                                                                               
  Number 674                                                                   
                                                                               
  DEAN GUANELI, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division,                 
  Department of  Law, testified that  the committee substitute                 
  requires a  99 year  mandatory sentence  for someone  who is                 
  convicted of a Class  A or Unclassified felony, and  who has                 
  been  previously  convicted  of  similar offenses  at  least                 
  twice.    He   further  testified   that  this  bill   gives                 
  prosecutors  some  prosecutorial   discretion  in   deciding                 
  whether to proceed with  this mandatory sentencing provision                 
  or not and he feels that  consideration is very important in                 
  order to eliminate,  perhaps, some unjust result  that might                 
  occur.   He further  indicated the  bill  requires that  the                 
  third felony be an unclassified offense.                                     
                                                                               
  Number 776                                                                   
                                                                               
  JUDGE JIM  HANSEN, Superior Court,  Anchorage, testified via                 
  teleconference  in support  of the  legislation and  further                 
  testified that HB  334 would be a good tool to use and he is                 
  pleased that prosecutorial discretion is  a component of the                 
  legislation.  Specifically, Judge  Hansen testified that  on                 
  page 4, line 26, adding the  word "similar" and deleting the                 
  words  "substantially  identical" would  create difficulties                 
  for the court.                                                               
                                                                               
  REP. GREEN asked  if there would be any benefit  of having a                 
  mandatory life  or another  15 year  sentencing addition  to                 
  present  law  that  would  lock  up  an individual  for  the                 
  remainder of his life.                                                       
                                                                               
  MR. GUANELI responded that the  first two "strikes" could be                 
  a class of lower felonies that would satisfy those first two                 
  strikes.  He then added that on the first felony conviction,                 
  an  individual might  only serve one  or so  years.   On the                 
  second felony, they might serve only four or so years, maybe                 
  more.   He felt  they were talking  about people who  are in                 
  their late twenty's  or early thirty's who would  commit the                 
  serious third felony.