A bill to amend title 18 of the United States Code to provide criteria for the imposition of the death penalty for certain explosives related offenses.

Summary

Requires, where a defendant is found guilty of or pleads guilty to an explosive related offense for which one of the possible sentences is death, that the judge who resided at the trial or before whom the guilty plea was entered conduct a separate hearing to determine the existence of mitigating and aggravating factors. Dismisses such requirement where the government stipulated that none of the aggravating factors exists or that one or more of the mitigating factors exists. Requires that the hearing be conducted before a jury or, if the defendant so moves, before the court alone, if the court and the government approve. Requires the court to disclose to the defendant or his counsel all material contained in any presentence report, if one has been prepared, except such material as the court determines is required to be withheld for the protection of human life or for the protection of national security. Removes from consideration any such presentence information withheld from the defendant. Sets forth trial procedures and directs the jury or the court to return a special verdict setting forth its findings as to the existence or nonexistence of each aggravating and mitigating factor. Permits the imposition of the death penalty only where the jury or, where there is no jury, the court finds by a preponderance of the information that one or more of the aggravating factors exists and that none of the mitigating factors exists.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

No timeline events have been ingested for this record yet.

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

No version snapshots stored. Document URLs remain at the source.

Documents

1 official file

• Introduced in House

  summary · EN · 4 January 1977

  Open at official source

Sponsors

No sponsors or actors listed by the source.

Related records

No cross-record relationships stored yet.