The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to amend sentences of imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) for life without parole to permit the possibility of parole if the defendant was certified and his/her case was transferred from juvenile court to criminal court.

Providing for the possibility of parole is expected to result in decreased demands upon the correctional resources of the State due to shorter terms of incarceration. As of August 31, 2012, there were 26 individuals in prison for a capital offense who were serving a sentence of life without the possibility parole and who were 17 years old or less at the time of the offense.  For this analysis, it is assumed the number of offenders affected by this statute would not result in a significant impact on the programs and workload of State corrections agencies or on the demand for resources and services of those agencies.