The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to require the court of criminal appeals to reform the sentences of individuals who were sentenced to life without parole and who were 17 years old or less at the time of the offense to a sentence of life with the possibility of parole or for any term of not more than 99 years.

Providing for the possibility of parole and/or reducing the sentence of individuals 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.