HB1630

House Bill 1630 seeks to amend Arkansas statutes regarding capital murder, murder in the first degree, and manslaughter. The bill expands the list of predicate offenses that trigger these charges by including violations of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act involving the actual delivery of a controlled substance. Under current law, these homicide charges are generally predicated on specific felonies. This amendment explicitly incorporates certain controlled substance offenses—even if categorized as misdemeanors in other contexts—into the definitions for these serious homicide offenses. If a death occurs during the commission or flight from such a drug-related offense, the bill establishes a legal pathway to charge the offender with capital murder, first-degree murder, or manslaughter, depending on the specific circumstances of the death.