CRIMINAL/PROCEDURE: Provides relative to the applicability of firearm enhancement provisions and penalties to plea agreements
HB 79 clarifies how firearm-related sentencing enhancements apply when defendants enter plea agreements in Louisiana. It requires prosecutors and defendants to formally agree in writing (a "stipulation") about whether a firearm was possessed, used, or discharged during specific felonies or enumerated misdemeanors (like violent crimes, theft, burglary, or drug offenses) before a plea is finalized. This process replaces the previous requirement for a jury trial to determine these facts in plea cases. The bill directly affects defendants pleading guilty to qualifying offenses who used firearms, ensuring the applicable mandatory minimum sentences (2 years for possession, 5 for use, 10 for discharge) are applied consistently through the plea agreement process.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
May 2025
House Passage
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
May 2025
Signed into Law
Jun 2025
Introduced Mar 17, 2025
Signed Jun 4, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons
What changed between versions
HB79 Original
→
HB79 Act 52
·
4 edits
MODERATE
This bill updates Louisiana's firearm enhancement laws to explicitly include crimes involving controlled dangerous substances and specifically enumerated misdemeanors as triggers for mandatory minimum sentences. It clarifies that these enhancements apply even when a case is resolved through a plea agreement, provided the prosecution and defendant agree to the specific provisions. The law now requires a jury to find these facts beyond a reasonable doubt or for the parties to formally stipulate to them in writing.
Scope change
The bill expands the scope of the law to cover drug-related offenses and specific misdemeanors, whereas the original version focused primarily on felonies.
SCOPE
Added controlled substance offenses and specifically enumerated misdemeanors as crimes that trigger mandatory firearm enhancement penalties.
REQUIREMENT
Clarified that plea agreements can now establish the applicability of these enhancements if both the district attorney and defendant agree in writing.
Reorganized the sentencing structure to clearly distinguish between possessing, using, or discharging a firearm, with specific minimum years for each scenario.
Added a specific provision for violent felonies involving firearms, mandating a minimum ten-year sentence, or twenty years if the firearm was discharged.
Floor votes · Senate May 28, 2025 · House Apr 24, 2025
How they voted
34–0
Passed · 3 other
Total votes 37
May 28, 2025
D
Democratic11
90% Yea
R
Republican26
92% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
20
Key actions
4
Committee
5
May 28, 2025
Upper · Passed
Read by title, passed by a vote of 36 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.
upper
May 19, 2025
Committee
Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.
upper
May 14, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably.
upper
Apr 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 86, nays 4. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.
lower
Apr 16, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported favorably (11-0).
lower
Apr 14, 2025
Committee
Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice.
lower
Mar 17, 2025
Committee
Under the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice.
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Tony Bacala
RRepublican
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