A Tennessee House subcommittee on Wednesday passed a measure that legislators said will keep armed robbers behind bars longer.
House Democratic Leader Gary Odom said, “Unfortunately, a lot of armed robbers have been serving only a small percentage of their sentences, due to budgetary restraints in the state. We have found a way to keep these people in jail longer without additional cost to taxpayers.
“We’re talking about criminals who have stuck guns in citizens’ faces and are walking around on the streets. We have begun a process of changing the sentencing statutes so that we can put them where they belong - in jail.”
The bill passed unanimously through the House Criminal Practice subcommittee Wednesday afternoon. Rep. Odom said he plans to move the bill through the House Judiciary and Finance Committees and to a full vote in the next two weeks.
The bill, inspired by a West Nashville constituent held at gunpoint by a criminal who pleaded guilty to earlier armed robbery charges, will more than double the minimum amount of time served for aggravated robbery from 30 to 75 percent.
“A constituent came to me and said: ‘Gary this guy pointed a gun at me and robbed me in broad daylight in my yard. I was angry when I learned that he had done it before and should have still been in jail,’” Rep. Odom said.
He said the bill "doesn’t cost taxpayers because it is written to require that non-violent felons serve sentences in very extensive community corrections programs, under which they would pay retribution to their victims. By requiring these persons to serve in these programs, the measure would free up cells for the most violent criminals in society. These community-correction sentences would include offenses involving limited amounts of fraud and forgery and other non-violent property offenses.
"The armed robber in the West Nashville case, under this legislation, would have served six of the eight years sentenced instead of only 2.4 years."
He said the bill has been endorsed by the chiefs of police in the four major Tennessee cities, in all three grand divisions.