HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – The Pennsylvania State Senate has advanced new legislation that will set strict sentencing guidelines for those convicted of second-degree murder after the state’s Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life without the possibility of parole was unconstitutional.

Pennsylvania’s second-degree murder charge can be applied to someone present at a murder, such as a getaway driver who did not directly cause the death.

The court ruled in March that denying the possibility of parole in these cases constitutes excessive punishment. A 120-day stay, which ends in late July, was granted by the court “to provide a reasonable amount of time for the General Assembly to consider remedial measures.”

The legislation, which passed Thursday by a 31-18 vote, establishes a second-degree sentencing range of 35 years to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Under the proposed legislation, judges would have discretion to lower the sentencing for those who did not directly cause the death or sentence someone without the possibility of parole in rare cases where someone directly caused the death, and there was another “aggravating factor.”

Those already serving second-degree murder convictions would be eligible for parole after 35 years or if they have served 20 years and are at least 70 years old.

Attorney General Dave Sunday (R) says he supports the legislation, which now moves to the Democrat-controlled State House.

It’s a balance lawmakers are working to find to prevent lenient punishments that may set dangerous criminals free, while also complying with the court’s ruling. Sunday says he believes this bill “strikes that balance.”

“There are times where I will tell you a life sentence is absolutely the just outcome,” said Sunday, who previously served as the York County District Attorney. “And there are times over the years, where I will say, where I may have been a little uncomfortable with an outcome but had no other recourse.”

Governor Josh Shapiro said following the court’s ruling that he believed the current second-degree murder law is “unjust and wrong.”

“Common sense and true justice dictate that we need different penalties for different conduct,” Shapiro said in March. “For example, the getaway driver shouldn’t get the same sentence as the person who pulls the trigger.”

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