As Introduced 1
122nd General Assembly 4
Regular Session S. B. No. 32 5
1997-1998 6
SENATORS HOWARD-GILLMOR-WHITE-CUPP-DIX-LATTA 8
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A B I L L
To amend sections 2903.01, 2929.04, and 2941.14 of 12
the Revised Code to expand the offense of 13
aggravated murder to also prohibit purposely
causing the death of a victim under thirteen 14
years of age and to prohibit causing the death of
a victim under thirteen years of age as a 15
proximate result of committing or attempting to 16
commit felonious assault or aggravated assault
against the victim, and to include as a capital 17
offense aggravating circumstance the commission 18
of the aggravated murder against a victim under 19
thirteen years of age when the offender was the
principal offender or committed the aggravated 20
murder with prior calculation and design.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO: 22
Section 1. That sections 2903.01, 2929.04, and 2941.14 of 24
the Revised Code be amended to read as follows: 25
Sec. 2903.01. (A) No person shall purposely, and with 34
prior calculation and design, cause the death of another or the 35
unlawful termination of another's pregnancy. 36
(B) No person shall purposely cause the death of another 38
or the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy while 40
committing or attempting to commit, or while fleeing immediately 41
after committing or attempting to commit kidnapping, rape, 42
aggravated arson or arson, aggravated robbery or robbery,
aggravated burglary or burglary, or escape. 43
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(C) NO PERSON SHALL PURPOSELY CAUSE THE DEATH OF ANOTHER 45
WHO IS UNDER THIRTEEN YEARS OF AGE AT THE TIME OF THE COMMISSION 46
OF THE OFFENSE.
(D) NO PERSON SHALL CAUSE THE DEATH OF ANOTHER WHO IS 48
UNDER THIRTEEN YEARS OF AGE AT THE TIME OF THE COMMISSION OF THE 49
OFFENSE AS A PROXIMATE RESULT OF THE OFFENDER'S COMMITTING OR 50
ATTEMPTING TO COMMIT A VIOLATION OF SECTION 2903.11 OR 2903.12 OF 51
THE REVISED CODE AGAINST THE PERSON WHO IS UNDER THIRTEEN YEARS 52
OF AGE.
(E) Whoever violates this section is guilty of aggravated 54
murder, and shall be punished as provided in section 2929.02 of 55
the Revised Code. 56
(D)(F) No person shall be convicted of aggravated murder 58
IN VIOLATION OF DIVISION (A) OR (B) OF THIS SECTION unless the 60
person is specifically found to have intended to cause the death 61
of another or the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy.
In no case shall a jury in an aggravated murder case INVOLVING AN 63
ALLEGED VIOLATION OF DIVISION (A) OR (B) OF THIS SECTION be 64
instructed in such a manner that it may believe that a person who 65
commits or attempts to commit any offense listed in division (B) 66
of this section is to be conclusively inferred, because the 67
person engaged in a common design with others to commit the 68
offense by force and violence or because the offense and the 69
manner of its commission would be likely to produce death or the 70
unlawful termination of another's pregnancy, to have intended to 71
cause the death of any person who is killed or the unlawful 72
termination of another's pregnancy during the commission of, 73
attempt to commit, or flight from the commission of or attempt to 74
commit, the offense. If a jury in an aggravated murder case 75
INVOLVING AN ALLEGED VIOLATION OF DIVISION (A) OR (B) OF THIS 76
SECTION is instructed that a person who commits or attempts to 77
commit any offense listed in division (B) of this section may be 78
inferred, because the offender engaged in a common design with 79
others to commit the offense by force or violence or because the 80
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offense and the manner of its commission would be likely to 81
produce death or the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy, 82
to have intended to cause the death of any person who is killed 83
or the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy during the 84
commission of, attempt to commit, or flight from the commission 85
of or attempt to commit the offense, the jury also shall be 86
instructed that the inference is nonconclusive, that the 87
inference may be considered in determining intent, that it is to 88
consider all evidence introduced by the prosecution to indicate 89
the person's intent and by the person to indicate the person's 90
lack of intent in determining whether the person specifically 92
intended to cause the death of the person killed or the unlawful 93
termination of another's pregnancy, and that the prosecution must 94
prove the specific intent of the person to have caused the death 95
or the unlawful termination of another's pregnancy by proof 96
beyond a reasonable doubt. 97
Sec. 2929.04. (A) Imposition of the death penalty for 106
aggravated murder is precluded, unless one or more of the 107
following is specified in the indictment or count in the 108
indictment pursuant to section 2941.14 of the Revised Code and 109
proved beyond a reasonable doubt: 110
(1) The offense was the assassination of the president of 112
the United States or person in line of succession to the 113
presidency, or of the governor or lieutenant governor of this 114
state, or of the president-elect or vice president-elect of the 115
United States, or of the governor-elect or lieutenant 116
governor-elect of this state, or of a candidate for any of the 117
foregoing offices. For purposes of this division, a person is a 118
candidate if he THE PERSON has been nominated for election 119
according to law, or if he THE PERSON has filed a petition or 120
petitions according to law to have his THE PERSON'S name placed 121
on the ballot in a primary or general election, or if he THE 122
PERSON campaigns as a write-in candidate in a primary or general 123
election.
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(2) The offense was committed for hire. 125
(3) The offense was committed for the purpose of escaping 127
detection, apprehension, trial, or punishment for another offense 128
committed by the offender. 129
(4) The offense was committed while the offender was a 131
prisoner in a detention facility as defined in section 2921.01 of 132
the Revised Code. 133
(5) Prior to the offense at bar, the offender was 135
convicted of an offense an essential element of which was the 136
purposeful killing of or attempt to kill another, or the offense 137
at bar was part of a course of conduct involving the purposeful 138
killing of or attempt to kill two or more persons by the 139
offender. 140
(6) The victim of the offense was a peace officer, as 142
defined in section 2935.01 of the Revised Code, whom the offender 143
had reasonable cause to know or knew to be such, and either the 144
victim, at the time of the commission of the offense, was engaged 145
in his THE VICTIM'S duties, or it was the offender's specific 146
purpose to kill a peace officer. 147
(7) The offense was committed while the offender was 149
committing, attempting to commit, or fleeing immediately after 150
committing or attempting to commit kidnapping, rape, aggravated 151
arson, aggravated robbery, or aggravated burglary, and either the 152
offender was the principal offender in the commission of the 153
aggravated murder or, if not the principal offender, committed 154
the aggravated murder with prior calculation and design. 155
(8) The victim of the aggravated murder was a witness to 157
an offense who was purposely killed to prevent his THE VICTIM'S 158
testimony in any criminal proceeding and the aggravated murder 159
was not committed during the commission, attempted commission, or 160
flight immediately after the commission or attempted commission 161
of the offense to which the victim was a witness, or the victim 162
of the aggravated murder was a witness to an offense and was 163
purposely killed in retaliation for his THE VICTIM'S testimony in 164
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any criminal proceeding. 165
(9) THE VICTIM OF THE AGGRAVATED MURDER WAS UNDER THIRTEEN 167
YEARS OF AGE AT THE TIME OF THE COMMISSION OF THE OFFENSE, AND 168
EITHER THE OFFENDER WAS THE PRINCIPAL OFFENDER IN THE COMMISSION 169
OF THE AGGRAVATED MURDER OR, IF NOT THE PRINCIPAL OFFENDER, 170
COMMITTED THE AGGRAVATED MURDER WITH PRIOR CALCULATION AND 171
DESIGN.
(B) If one or more of the aggravating circumstances listed 173
in division (A) of this section is specified in the indictment or 174
count in the indictment and proved beyond a reasonable doubt, and 175
if the offender did not raise the matter of age pursuant to 176
section 2929.023 of the Revised Code or if the offender, after 177
raising the matter of age, was found at trial to have been 178
eighteen years of age or older at the time of the commission of 179
the offense, the court, trial jury, or panel of three judges 180
shall consider, and weigh against the aggravating circumstances 181
proved beyond a reasonable doubt, the nature and circumstances of 182
the offense, the history, character, and background of the 183
offender, and all of the following factors: 184
(1) Whether the victim of the offense induced or 186
facilitated it; 187
(2) Whether it is unlikely that the offense would have 189
been committed, but for the fact that the offender was under 190
duress, coercion, or strong provocation; 191
(3) Whether, at the time of committing the offense, the 193
offender, because of a mental disease or defect, lacked 194
substantial capacity to appreciate the criminality of his THE 195
OFFENDER'S conduct or to conform his THE OFFENDER'S conduct to 197
the requirements of the law;
(4) The youth of the offender; 199
(5) The offender's lack of a significant history of prior 201
criminal convictions and delinquency adjudications; 202
(6) If the offender was a participant in the offense but 204
not the principal offender, the degree of the offender's 205
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participation in the offense and the degree of the offender's 206
participation in the acts that led to the death of the victim; 207
(7) Any other factors that are relevant to the issue of 209
whether the offender should be sentenced to death. 210
(C) The defendant shall be given great latitude in the 212
presentation of evidence of the factors listed in division (B) of 213
this section and of any other factors in mitigation of the 214
imposition of the sentence of death. 215
The existence of any of the mitigating factors listed in 217
division (B) of this section does not preclude the imposition of 218
a sentence of death on the offender, but shall be weighed 219
pursuant to divisions (D)(2) and (3) of section 2929.03 of the 220
Revised Code by the trial court, trial jury, or the panel of 221
three judges against the aggravating circumstances the offender 222
was found guilty of committing. 223
Sec. 2941.14. (A) In an indictment for aggravated murder, 232
murder, or voluntary or involuntary manslaughter, the manner in 233
which, or the means by which the death was caused need not be set 234
forth. 235
(B) Imposition of the death penalty for aggravated murder 237
is precluded unless the indictment or count in the indictment 238
charging the offense specifies one or more of the aggravating 239
circumstances listed in division (A) of section 2929.04 of the 240
Revised Code. If more than one aggravating circumstance is 241
specified to an indictment or count, each shall be in a 242
separately numbered specification, and if an aggravating 243
circumstance is specified to a count in an indictment containing 244
more than one count, such specification shall be identified as to 245
the count to which it applies. 246
(C) A specification to an indictment or count in an 248
indictment charging aggravated murder shall be stated at the end 249
of the body of the indictment or count, and may be in 250
substantially the following form: 251
Specification "SPECIFICATION (or, Specification 1 254
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SPECIFICATION 1, or Specification to the First Count 255
SPECIFICATION TO THE FIRST COUNT, or, Specification 1 to the 257
First Count SPECIFICATION 1 TO THE FIRST COUNT). The Grand 258
Jurors further find and specify that (set forth the applicable 259
aggravating circumstance listed in divisions (A)(1) to (8)(9) of 261
section 2929.04 of the Revised Code. The aggravating
circumstance may be stated in the words of the subdivision in 262
which it appears, or in words sufficient to give the accused 263
notice of the same)." 264
Section 2. That existing sections 2903.01, 2929.04, and 266
2941.14 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed. 267