SB592: SB592 "One Strike Act"; enact

Georgia law currently sets minimum prison terms for crimes like aggravated assault, aggravated battery and kidnapping that are lower than what this bill proposes. Senate Bill 592 rewrites those sentencing ranges in Georgia's criminal code (O.C.G.A. Title 16) to raise the minimum years a judge must impose, while keeping the top end at life without parole or life in prison for many versions of these crimes. The bill also creates a new rule: anyone convicted of rape, sexual battery, or aggravated sexual battery where the victim was under 12 and the offender was 18 or older must be sentenced to life without parole or life in prison. It adds aggravated assault and aggravated battery to the list of crimes classified as "serious violent felonies" under O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1. It also creates a new code section removing parole eligibility for people serving time for certain offenses (murder, assault, rape, drug distribution) and gang-related crimes, and bars early termination of probation or use of remote reporting centers for anyone convicted of a serious violent felony. The changes would take effect July 1, 2026 and apply only to offenses committed on or after that date.

• Raises the minimum prison sentence for aggravated assault from one year to three years, and increases many of its enhanced-penalty minimums (for example, assaults on public safety officers, the elderly, or in schools) by several years each.
• Raises the minimum prison sentence for aggravated battery from one year to three years, with similar increases for its enhanced categories such as assaults on the elderly or on public transit.
• Increases the minimum sentence for kidnapping a victim 14 or older from an unspecified lower term to ten years, up to life without parole.
• Requires life without parole or life in prison for anyone 18 or older convicted of raping, sexually battering, or aggravated sexually battering a victim under 12 years old.
• Adds aggravated assault and aggravated battery to Georgia's list of "serious violent felonies" (O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1), which carries stricter sentencing consequences.
• Creates a new code section (17-10-6.4) removing parole eligibility for people serving sentences for certain crimes and barring early termination of probation or use of remote probation reporting centers for serious violent felons.

The bill affects people convicted of violent crimes such as aggravated assault, aggravated battery, kidnapping, rape, and sexual battery, as well as judges who impose sentences, prosecutors negotiating plea deals, the State Board of Pardons and Paroles, and probation officers who supervise offenders under Georgia's Department of Community Supervision.

People convicted of these offenses after July 1, 2026 would face longer mandatory minimum prison terms, less chance of parole, and fewer options to shorten or remotely report probation. Georgians convicted as adults of raping or sexually battering a child under 12 would automatically face life imprisonment rather than a range of possible sentences.

• Section 3 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 16-5-21 (aggravated assault), raising minimum sentences across nearly every subsection, including assaults on public safety officers, the elderly, school personnel, and healthcare or utility workers.
• Section 4 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 16-5-24 (aggravated battery) with similar minimum-sentence increases for its enhanced categories.
• Section 5 raises the minimum sentence for kidnapping a victim 14 or older to ten years under O.C.G.A. § 16-5-40.
• Sections 6 through 8 add new subsections to the rape, sexual battery, and aggravated sexual battery statutes requiring life without parole or life imprisonment when the victim was under 12 and the offender was 18 or older.
• Section 9 amends O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1 to add aggravated assault and aggravated battery to the list of "serious violent felonies."
• Section 10 creates new O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.4, removing parole eligibility for certain offenders, barring parole for gang-related crimes, and prohibiting early termination of probation or use of remote reporting centers for serious violent felons.
• Section 11 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applying only to offenses committed on or after that date.

1. 2026-03-06Senate Tabled (Senate)
2. 2026-03-04Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
3. 2026-03-03Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
4. 2026-02-26Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
5. 2026-02-25Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Steve Gooch (R, SD-051)Primary sponsor
• Jason Anavitarte (R, SD-031)
• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)
• Drew Echols (R, SD-049)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)
• Russ Goodman (R, SD-008)
• Frank Ginn (R, SD-047)
• Timothy Bearden (R, SD-030)
• Clint Dixon (R, SD-045)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Bill Cowsert (R, SD-046)

• criminal sentencing
• sexual offenses against children
• parole and probation
• violent crime penalties
• child protection laws