Nov. 19, 2019
HARRISBURG – Rep. Rob Kauffman (R-Franklin), in an effort to increase public safety and provide greater protection to the thousands of state and county corrections officers, led the House Judiciary Committee in voting out several important measures.
The first bill under consideration was House Bill 1855, also known as Markie’s Law. The law is named after an 8-year-old boy who was brutally stabbed to death by a man who was paroled at the end of his minimum sentence for homicide, even after committing two separate assaults of other inmates while behind bars.
“Violent individuals who are sent to prison and continue to commit violent acts while incarcerated should not be released on the streets after serving the bare minimum of their sentence,” said Kauffman, chairman of the Judiciary Committee. “These individuals are a danger to society, and the death of Markie Mason is a clear and tragic example of that.”
House Bill 1855 would preclude the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole from paroling an inmate at the expiration of his or her minimum sentence if the inmate was convicted of a violent offense or an obstruction of justice while incarcerated. It would postpone consideration of a violent inmate’s parole an additional 24 months following the inmate’s minimum release date for each conviction for a violent offense while incarcerated. In addition, it would postpone consideration of an inmate’s parole an additional 12 months if the inmate attempts to escape, smuggles contraband, or retaliates or intimidates witnesses while incarcerated.
The committee also approved a package of bills that would better support the men and women in Pennsylvania’s state and county correctional facilities.
Bills in the package include:
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House Bill 44 – Would give corrections officers the opportunity to submit a written statement or testify in-person at parole hearings.
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House Bill 256 – Would redefine assault on a prison staff member to reflect there is a lower threshold for an assault to occur when committed by an inmate against staff.
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House Bill 257 – Would provide that the sentence for violent offenses committed by an inmate against a detention facility or correctional facility employee be served consecutively to the inmate’s current sentence.
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House Bill 1781 – Would allow the governing authority of a county to permit its county corrections officers to carry and store a handgun and ammunition in a vehicle at a county correctional institution.
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House Resolution 178 – Would recommend the Department of Corrections provide identification badges for corrections officers.
“The men and women who work in our prisons are under attack each and every day, with hundreds of assaults against officers taking place each year – some fatal,” said Kauffman. “We can and should do more to ensure their safety and enable them to more effectively and easily do their jobs.”
All measures were overwhelmingly approved by the committee and now go to the full House for consideration.
Representative Rob Kauffman
89th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Tricia Lehman
717.772.9840
tlehman@pahousegop.com
RepKauffman.com
Rep. Rob Kauffman (front left), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, met with the family of Markie Mason prior to the Judiciary Committee vote on Markie’s Law. Pictured, from left, are Matthew Mason (Markie’s brother); Maram Saada (Markie’s mother); Kayla Mason (wife of Mark Mason Sr.); and Mark Mason Sr. (Markie’s father). Also pictured are Rep. Aaron Bernstine, author of Markie’s Law, and Laquisha Lyles (friend of Maram Saada).