HB 769

ENROLLED
 2026 Regular Session
  ACT No. 834
 HOUSE BILL NO. 769
 BY REPRESENTATIVE BOYD
1AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact Code of Criminal Procedure Article 313(A)(2), relative to arrests
3made for domestic abuse; to provide for minimum holding periods; and to provide
4for related matters.
5 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
6Section 1. Code of Criminal Procedure Article 313(A)(2) is hereby amended and
7 reenacted to read as follows:
8Art. 313. Gwen's Law; bail hearings; detention without bail
9A.
10*       *  *
11(2)(a) A contradictory bail hearing, as provided for in this Paragraph, may
12be held prior to setting bail for a person in custody who is charged with domestic
13abuse battery, violation of protective orders, stalking, or any felony offense involving
14the use or threatened use of force or a deadly weapon upon the defendant's family
15member, as defined in R.S. 46:2132 or upon the defendant's household member as
16defined in R.S. 14:35.3, or upon the defendant's dating partner, as defined in R.S.
1746:2151. If the court orders a contradictory hearing, the hearing shall be held within
18five days from the date of determination of probable cause, exclusive of weekends
19and legal holidays. At the contradictory hearing, the court shall determine the
20conditions of bail or whether the defendant should be held without bail pending trial.
21If the court decides not to hold a contradictory hearing, it shall notify the prosecuting
22attorney prior to setting bail.
23(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsubparagraph (a) of this
24 Subparagraph, a person charged with any crime listed in this Paragraph, and for        whom a
25 determination of probable cause has been made, may be held without bail for not less than
26 forty-eight hours nor more than seventy-two hours following the        determination of
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 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
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 HB NO. 769  ENROLLED
1 probable cause. This holding period shall run concurrently with the  time period
2 provided in Article 230.1.
3(c)   In deciding whether to impose the holding period authorized by
4Subsubparagraph (b) of this Subparagraph, the court shall consider any facts
5presented that indicate an increased risk to the victim, including but not limited to
6stalking, strangulation, violation of a protective order, use or threatened use of force
7or a deadly weapon, serious bodily injury, or documented threats to the victim, the
8victim's family, or the public.
9(d)   The holding period provided for in Subsubparagraph (b) of this
10Subparagraph may be referred to as a "cooling off" period for the benefit of the
11victim.
12*       *  *
  SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
  PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
  GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
 APPROVED:
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 CODING: Words in struck through type are deletions from existing law; words underscored
 are additions.