S.B. 618                                                  VETOES

411A. ATTEMPTED MURDER.

(A)    A PERSON WHO ATTEMPTS TO COMMIT MURDER IN THE SECOND DEGREE
IS GUILTY OF A FELONY AND ON CONVICTION IS SUBJECT TO IMPRISONMENT FOR
NOT MORE THAN 30 YEARS.

(B)     (1) A PERSON WHO ATTEMPTS TO COMMIT MURDER IN THE FIRST
DEGREE IS GUILTY OF A FELONY AND ON CONVICTION IS SUBJECT TO EITHER LIFE
IMPRISONMENT WITHOUT PAROLE OR A TERM OF IMPRISONMENT FOR NOT MORE
THAN LIFE.

(2) (I) IF THE STATE INTENDS TO SEEK A SENTENCE OF
IMPRISONMENT FOR LIFE WITHOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE, IT SHALL NOTIFY
THE DEFENDANT IN WRITING AT LEAST 30 DAYS PRIOR TO TRIAL.

(II) IF THE STATE DOES NOT PROVIDE THE NOTICE REQUIRED
UNDER PARAGRAPH (I) OF THIS PARAGRAPH, THE COURT MAY NOT IMPOSE A
SENTENCE OF LIFE WITHOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE.

COMMITTEE NOTE (COMMITTEE TO REVISE ARTICLE 27): The
Committee to Revise Article 27 of the Annotated Code recommends that attempted
murder be made a felony in order to indicate the seriousness of this crime and to provide
that there be no statute of limitations for this offense.

In subsection (b), the penalty for attempted first degree murder includes the
possibility of life without parole. Under current law in Article 27, § 644A the sentence for
an attempted crime may not exceed the maximum sentence for the completed crime. This
provision will clarify that a sentence of life without parole is possible for attempted first
degree murder.

441.

(e) The term "crime of violence" means abduction; arson in the first degree;
ASSAULT IN THE FIRST OR SECOND DEGREE; burglary in the first, second, or third
degree; escape; kidnapping; manslaughter, excepting involuntary manslaughter; [mayhem
AS PREVIOUSLY PROSCRIBED UNDER FORMER § 384 OF THIS ARTICLE;] murder; rape;
robbery; robbery with a deadly weapon; carjacking or armed carjacking; sexual offense in
the first degree; and sodomy; or an attempt to commit any of the aforesaid offenses[; or
assault with intent to commit any other offense punishable by imprisonment for more
than one year].

461B.

In any criminal prosecution for rape, attempted rape, [assault with intent to commit
a rape, assault with intent to commit a sexual offense,] ATTEMPTED SEXUAL OFFENSE,
or any other sexual offense, the jury may not be instructed:

(1)     To examine with caution the testimony of the prosecuting witness, solely
because of the nature of the charge;

(2)     That the charge is easily made or difficult to disprove, solely because of
the nature of the charge; or

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