Louisiana lawmakers advance increased criminal penalty bills
In Louisiana, a state that routinely reports one of the highest incarceration rates per-capita in the country, the Republican-controlled legislature is making a push to increase punishments for certain crimes.
From simple burglary to fentanyl-related crimes, a slew of bills that seek larger fines and longer jail time advanced in the Legislature this week. On Tuesday, lawmakers passed a bill in the Senate, 33-2, that would toughen penalties against people who produce fentanyl — a powerful opioid that is driving the country’s deadly overdose crisis. The bill will next be heard before a House committee.
Like the rest of the country, Louisiana’s fentanyl drug-related deaths have drastically increased over the years — from 200 in 2017 to 1,000 in 2021, according to data from the Louisiana Department of Health. State Sen. Sharon Hewitt, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, said her bill is meant to crack down on the issue.
Currently, if a person is convicted of illegal manufacturing off a controlled dangerous substance, they face five to 15 years in prison and can be fined up to $25,000. Under Hewitt’s bill, in addition to heightened fees, a person convicted of the crime would would face 10 to 40 for their first offense; 30 to 40 years for their second offense; and essentially life in prison, a minimum of 99 years without parole, on their third offense.
Here are other bills that would increase or create criminal penalties in Louisiana, which advanced Tuesday.
FENTANYL
Along with Hewitt’s bill, there are multiple bills that seek heightened punishments for fentanyl-related crimes. Rep. John Stefanski, who is running for Louisiana Attorney General, is proposing one of the harshest bills — if a person is convicted of possessing an aggregate weight of 28 grams or more of fentanyl they would be sentenced to life in prison without parole.
“Enough is enough,” Stefanski said about fentanyl overdoses and the illegal sale of the opioid. “I think this is one area ... one thing that will help that problem.”
Opponents fear that the bill’s language does not specify that the 28 grams must solely be comprised of fentanyl, and it could instead include the weight of a “carrier” drug. For example, if someone is caught with 28 grams of marijuana that is laced with tiny amounts of fentanyl, that person could still receive a life sentence under the proposed law.
Stefanski said he was open to tightening the language of the bill. The legislation advanced out of committee Tuesday and will be debated on the House floor.
BURGLARY
Rep. Debbie Villio is sponsoring a bill that would designate “simple burglary of an inhabited dwelling” as a crime of violence, if a person is home at the time of the incident.
“The emotional trauma suffered by a victim who is present in their home (during the crime) is very great. They feel a violation of their home, trust and safety... increased fears, anger and frustration,” Villio said.
Opponents of the bill argued that something such as stealing a bike from a shed should not be lumped in with violent crimes and if there is violence involved other charges — such as aggravated burglary and armed robbery -- can be pursued instead.
Villio’s bill passed on the House floor 73-28, and it will advance to a Senate committee.
CRIMINAL ACCESS OF ATM
Rep. Tony Bacala has put forth a bill that would create the theft or criminal access of an ATM a crime — this includes the intentional destroying, damaging, impairing, tampering of an ATM, with the intent to steal money or a person’s financial information. If convicted, a person would face five to 10 years in prison, up to a $10,000 fine and pay restitution.
The bill unanimously passed in the House, and it will advance to the Senate.
LESSER CRIMINAL PUNISHMENTS
Democrats have also put forth bills surrounding criminal penalties, most of which would decrease or eliminate certain punishments.
On Tuesday, a Republican-controlled committee killed a bill that sought to decriminalize the possession and distribution of marijuana in the state. Last week, a bill that would have made jaywalking a secondary offense — one that can still be ticketed, but not used by police to initiate a traffic stop — failed on the House floor, 39-56.
In addition, there is legislation this year, that has received the support of Gov. John Bel Edwards, that would abolish the state’s death penalty. The fate of the bill has yet to be determined.