HB 61

Criminals who try to murder a peace officer or firefighter should serve the majority of their sentence according to a bill that gained initial approval in committee.

House Bill 61, which the Kentucky Association of Counties supports, would make criminal attempt to commit murder of a law enforcement officer or firefighter an offense for which 85 percent of the sentence must be served before eligible for probation or parole.  Current law only requires 20 percent of the sentence to be served before eligibility.

Pendleton County Sheriff Craig Peoples and other law enforcement officers spoke on behalf of the bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Gerald Watkins.

Rep. Robert Benvenuti III showed his support.

“It should be shocking to every citizen in Kentucky that a perpetrator can look through the sights of a weapon, squeeze the trigger and by the grace of God a law enforcement officer or first responder is missed, and that individual will serve 20 percent of their sentence,” Benvenuti said. “How ridiculous and how sad.”

The bill gained unanimous approval in House Judiciary Committee and now awaits action by the full House.