The bill would amend the Government Code as it relates to the parole eligibility of offenders convicted of murder by delaying the parole eligibility date if the offenders evaded arrest.  For every twelve months between the date the arrest warrant is issued for the offender and the date the offender is arrested, the earliest date of parole eligibility would be delayed three years.

Delaying parole eligibility for any criminal offense is expected to result in increased demands upon the correctional resources of the State due to longer terms of confinement in prison.  In fiscal year 2006, 569 offenders were admitted to prison for murder.  The average sentence length was 35 years.  In fiscal year 2006, 323 offenders were released from prison for murder.  They served approximately 68 percent of their sentence.  It is estimated that offenders sentenced to prison for murder will serve approximately 23.5 years.  Analysis of fiscal year 2006 releases indicate approximately 83 percent of offenders identified by the bill were in custody within one year of their offense date; therefore, the enhancement provision of the bill is anticipated to apply to a small percentage of offenders.

Given the proposal would apply to offenses committed on or after September 1, 2007 and that under current law and policy individuals convicted of murder serve a high percentage of their sentence and the majority are in custody within one year of the date of their offense, the impact of this proposal would not be significant in the first five years of implementation.