I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5040 
To modify the law with respect to the death penalty, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 29, 2006 
Mr. GOHMERT introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To modify the law with respect to the death penalty, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Death Penalty Reform 
Act of 2006’’. 
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO TITLE 28. 
Chapter 153 of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in section 2254(h) by striking ‘‘section 408 
of the Controlled Substances Act’’ and inserting 
‘‘section 3599 of title 18’’; and 
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(2) in section 2255 by striking ‘‘section 408 of 
the Controlled Substances Act’’ and inserting ‘‘sec-
tion 3599 of title 18’’. 
SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO SECTION 3592 OF 
TITLE 18. 
Section 3592 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘for which 
notice has been provided’’ after ‘‘factor’’; 
(2) in subsection (c)(1)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘section 241 (conspiracy 
against rights), section 245 (federally protected 
activities), section 247 (interference with reli-
gious exercise)’’ after ‘‘section 37 (violence at 
international airports),’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘section 1512 (tampering 
with a witness, victim, or an informant), section 
1513 (retaliating against a witness, victim, or 
an informant),’’ after ‘‘section 1203 (hostage 
taking),’’; 
(3) in subsection (c)(2)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘For any offense, other 
than an offense for which a sentence of death 
is sought on the basis of section 924(c), the’’ 
and inserting ‘‘The’’; and 
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(B) by striking ‘‘previously’’ and inserting 
‘‘, in a prior adjudication,’’; 
(4) in subsection (c)(8)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘or’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘or in order to retain ille-
gal possession’’ before ‘‘of anything’’; 
(5) in subsection (c)(12), by striking ‘‘had pre-
viously’’ each place that term appears and inserting 
‘‘has previously’’; and 
(6) in subsection (c), by inserting after para-
graph (16) the following: 
‘‘(17) OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE.—The defend-
ant engaged in any conduct resulting in the death of 
another person in order to obstruct the investigation 
or prosecution of any offense.’’. 
SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO SECTION 3593 OF 
TITLE 18. 
Section 3593 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘, a reasonable time before 
the trial or before acceptance by the court of a 
plea of guilty,’’; 
(B) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 
following: 
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‘‘The notice must be filed a reasonable time before trial 
or before acceptance by the court of a plea of guilty. The 
court shall, where necessary to ensure adequate prepara-
tion time for the defense, grant a reasonable continuance 
of the trial. If the government has not filed a notice of 
intent to seek the death penalty or informed the court that 
a notice of intent to seek the death penalty will not be 
filed, the court shall not accept a plea of guilty to an of-
fense described in section 3591 without the concurrence 
of the government.’’; and 
(C) by inserting before the last sentence 
the following: ‘‘The government may also pro-
vide notice under this subsection of any factor 
concerning the state of mind, intent or other 
culpability of the defendant in committing the 
offense.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b), by inserting at the end of 
paragraph (3) the following: 
‘‘The court shall not dismiss alternate jurors impaneled 
during the guilt phase unless for good cause as to indi-
vidual alternates or upon a finding, under this subsection, 
that the sentencing hearing will be heard by the court 
alone. The court shall retain such alternate jurors to hear 
the sentencing trial until the completion of the hearing. 
If at any time, whether before or after the final submission 
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of the sentencing case to the jury, a sitting juror dies or 
becomes ill, or upon other good cause shown to the court 
is found to be unable to perform his or her duty in a timely 
manner, or if a juror requests a discharge and good cause 
appears therefor, the court shall order the juror to be dis-
charged and draw the name of an alternate, who shall then 
take a place in the jury box, and be subject to the same 
rules and regulations as though the alternate juror had 
been selected as one of the original jurors. If deliberations 
have begun when the substitution is made, the court shall 
instruct the newly constituted jury to recommence delib-
erations as if none had previously taken place. The panel, 
in all other respects, shall be considered unaltered by the 
substitution of a duly seated alternate.’’; 
(3) in subsection (c) — 
(A) in the fourth sentence, by inserting 
‘‘for which notice has been provided under sub-
section (b)’’ before the period; 
(B) in the fifth sentence, by inserting ‘‘, 
including 
information 
pertaining 
to 
unadjudicated conduct’’ before the period; 
(C) by inserting after the eighth sentence 
the following: ‘‘The government shall be per-
mitted to cross-examine the defendant regard-
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ing any statements or testimony by the defend-
ant to the sentencing jury.’’; 
(D) by inserting after the fourth sentence 
the following: ‘‘If the defendant has raised the 
issue of mental retardation as required under 
subsection (b), the defendant may introduce in-
formation relevant to mental retardation.’’; and 
(E) by inserting at the end the following: 
‘‘The defendant shall have the burden of prov-
ing mental retardation by the preponderance of 
the information.’’; 
(4) in subsection (d)— 
(A) in the second sentence by inserting 
‘‘determine the truth of the allegations in the 
notice filed under subsection (a) of this section 
regarding any mental state set forth in section 
3591(a), and’’ after ‘‘It shall’’; 
(B) by inserting after the second sentence 
the following: ‘‘In any case in which the defend-
ant has raised the issue of mental retardation 
as required under subsection (b), the jury, or if 
there is no jury, the court, shall determine the 
issue of mental retardation only if any aggra-
vating factor set forth in section 3592 is found 
to exist. Such determination shall occur prior to 
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