SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Legislation to broaden the state's three-strikes law for violent offenders with three or more felony convictions is scheduled for a vote on the House floor Thursday.
Rep. Paul Pacheco's proposal to add 16 felonies to the list of crimes that make repeat offenders eligible for life sentences is part of a slate of tough-on-crime bills proposed by Republican lawmakers.
The proposals come as strict sentencing laws already on the books in other states are being re-evaluated amid concerns nationally about burgeoning prison populations.
Pacheco, an Albuquerque Republican, says New Mexico's current three-strikes law is so narrow that no one has been convicted under it since it was enacted two decades ago.
Democrats have raised concerns that the bill as written would target nonviolent offenders.
The House Judiciary Committee voted 7-4 Tuesday, sending it to the House floor.