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HB 4508

Crimes: penalties; mandatory life imprisonment for certain crimes in the penal code; modify for certain offenders. Amends secs. 16, 18, 200i, 204, 207, 209, 210, 211a, 316, 436, 520b & 543f of 1931 PA 328 (MCL 750.16 et seq.). TIE BAR WITH: HB 4506'25

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Sarah Lightner

HB 4508 lets prosecutors seek life without parole for 19- or 20-year-olds in certain murders and death-related offenses, with hearings and youth-focused, individualized review.

placed on third reading
#crimes:penalties #criminalprocedure:sentencing
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Bill Summary · HB 4508

Summary — HB 4508 (Michigan Penal Code amendments)

Status: Placed on third reading (July 24, 2025). Introduced March 12, 2025; sponsored by Rep. Sarah Lightner. Tie-bar with HB 4506 (procedure) and related HB 4507 (Public Health Code). Companion: SB 1805.

Purpose / Intent

HB 4508 extends the statutory framework that permits imposition of life without parole (LWOP) under an individualized sentencing process to offenders who were 19 or 20 years old at the time of the offense. It updates multiple provisions of the Michigan Penal Code to allow prosecutors to seek LWOP (subject to specified procedural protections and judicial consideration) for certain very serious offenses committed by 19- and 20-year-olds.

Key provisions and changes

  • Expands LWOP eligibility for defendants who were age 19 or 20 at the time of the offense for specified crimes listed in the Penal Code (see “Offenses”).
  • Incorporates a procedural framework (tied to HB 4506) modeled on existing provisions that apply to juveniles:
    • Prosecutor may file a motion seeking LWOP no later than 42 days after conviction.
    • For convictions entered before the bill’s effective date, prosecutors may move for resentencing to LWOP within 360 days after the effective date; resentenced defendants must receive credit for time served.
    • Defendant must file a response within 14 days of notice of the motion.
    • Court must hold a hearing as part of sentencing/resentencing and consider the Miller v. Alabama (2012) factors (individualized youth-related mitigation), the defendant’s institutional record, and any other relevant criteria.
    • Victims of the original offense must be afforded the right to give an oral victim impact statement under Michigan’s Crime Victim’s Rights Act.
    • If the prosecutor does not file a timely motion, the court must impose a term-of-years sentence (rather than LWOP) with the following parameters:
    • Minimum term between 35 and 50 years
    • Maximum term of not less than 80 years
    • Any such term must be served consecutively to other sentences for offenses arising from the same transaction or occurrence.
  • HB 4508 amends multiple Penal Code sections (MCL 750.16, 750.18, 750.200i, 750.204, 750.207, 750.209, 750.210, 750.211a, 750.316, 750.436, 750.520b, 750.543f) to add or update LWOP references and penalties where death or particular harms result.

Offenses affected (examples)

Subjects to the procedural requirements above, defendants aged 19 or 20 at offense time could be eligible for LWOP for violations that result in death, including:
- Adulteration/misbranding of drugs or medicines causing death (intent to kill or cause serious impairment of bodily function to two or more people).
- Knowingly mixing/altering drugs or medicines that injuriously affect quality/potency resulting in death.
- First-degree murder.
- Willful poisoning/mingling of harmful substances in food, drink, medicines, or public water supply resulting in death.
- Premeditated acts of terrorism causing death.
- Violations under the Explosives and Bombs chapter.
- Any other statutory violation that results in death and for which parole eligibility is expressly denied under state law.

Who is affected

  • Criminal defendants who were 19 or 20 at the time of their offense — newly subject to potential LWOP under an individualized sentencing process.
  • Prosecuting attorneys — given explicit timelines and authority to file motions seeking LWOP or resentencing to LWOP for pre‑existing convictions.
  • Judges — required to follow hearing, consideration, and sentencing rules described above.
  • Victims — afforded a statutory right to appear and make oral impact statements at sentencing/resentencing.
  • Correctional system — potential for additional LWOP sentences and increased long-term incarceration costs (fiscal impacts not specified in the bill text).

Procedural / timeline notes

  • HB 4508 cannot take effect unless HB 4506 is enacted (tie-bar).
  • Key deadlines in the bill:
    • Prosecutor’s motion to seek LWOP: within 42 days after conviction.
    • Prosecutor’s resentencing motion for pre-effective-date convictions: within 360 days after the bill’s effective date.
    • Defendant’s response to motion: within 14 days of notice.
  • The bill was reported favorably (committee substitute) and placed on the General State Calendar; as of July 24, 2025 it was placed on third reading.

Context

The bill builds on prior Michigan and U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence (Miller v. Alabama, Montgomery v. Louisiana, and People v. Parks) that requires individualized consideration before imposing LWOP on young offenders. HB 4508 expands that individualized-sentencing framework to 19- and 20‑year-old offenders for the covered offenses.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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