House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Passes Jillian's Law - Articles

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House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Passes Jillian's Law

Posted by: Paul Burch on Feb 1, 2024

On Tuesday of this week, the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee passed “Jillian’s Law,” WKRN reports. The bill, HB1640, is sponsored by Majority Leader William Lamberth in memory of Jillian Ludwig, a freshman at Belmont University who was shot and killed on Nov. 7, 2023, while walking in a Nashville park. Her killer, Shaquille Taylor, was a repeat violent offender prosecuted in April 2023 for a separate crime of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. “Jillian’s Law” would require defendants like Taylor to be committed to an appropriate treatment facility, something current law does not mandate, WSMV reports. It also would require that those deemed incompetent to stand trial to be entered into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which serves as a database of people prohibited from buying or owning firearms. Jillian’s parents, Jessica and Matt Ludwig, testified before the subcommittee, calling on lawmakers to close what they say is a loophole in the law.