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Smith-Wade-El, Rivera note passage of sentencing reform legislation

Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus    July 24, 2026 | 11:37 AM

HARRISBURG, July 24 – State Reps. Ismail Smith-Wade-El and Nikki Rivera, both D-Lancaster, praised the actions of the PA House of Representatives in passing legislation that would end mandatory life-without-parole sentences in cases of second-degree felony murder in Pennsylvania.

In 2024, Derek Lee, a Black man serving life without parole for second-degree murder, challenged the constitutionality of his sentence before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. He argued that since he did not kill or intend to kill anyone in a 2014 Pittsburgh robbery, his sentence is disproportionate and cruel under both the Pennsylvania and U.S. constitutions.

This March, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in Commonwealth v. Lee found that automatically imposing life without parole for all second-degree murder convictions violates the state constitution’s protections against cruel punishment because it does not consider individual responsibility or level of culpability.

Currently only five states — Pennsylvania, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, and North Carolina — require mandatory life sentences without the possibility of parole for second-degree felony murder convictions.

The bill passed by the House (H.B. 1042) would require the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing to deliver guidelines to judges while still ensuring judges can examine the facts of each case. It also would allow certain incarcerated people who served more than 30 years of their sentence before the PA Supreme Court ruling to apply for parole and sets up requirements for victim notification, parole board recommendations, and judicial approval.  

“Kudos to the advocates of this bill whose courage and tenacity has brought Pennsylvanians another step closer to a justice system that holds people accountable while honoring due process and humanity,” Smith-Wade-El said. “This bill is fundamentally about freedom: it liberates judges to exercise greater discernment and discretion in sentencing; provides incarcerated individuals with the hope of working towards rejoining their families and communities; and, at a societal level, frees us from costly and flawed sentencing practices rooted in fear to instead embrace rehabilitation and prevention."

“It is our job as legislators to ensure that everyone receives fair and constitutional treatment under our justice system and to continually improve that system so that everyone is treated justly,” Rivera said. “The House reconvened specifically to provide legislation that would give our justice system a  thoughtful and fair process to address those who are serving life sentences for second-degree murder.”

The representatives pointed out that while minorities make up only 27% of the state’s population, 80% of people serving life-without-parole sentences for felony murder are minorities

They contend that the bill, by replacing a mandatory sentence with individualized sentencing, could help reduce the disparate impact of Pennsylvania's felony murder sentencing laws while supporting judicial discretion and ensuring public safety.