Art. 905.9 Review on appeal

When someone is sentenced to death in Louisiana, the state Supreme Court automatically checks the sentence. The court looks at the case to make sure the death sentence is not excessive or unfair. This happens every single time, no matter what.

The Supreme Court also has the job of setting up the exact steps for how this review works. These steps have to meet standards required by the Constitution. This means the court cannot skip this check or handle it in a casual way. It has to follow a clear, consistent process for every death sentence case that comes before it.

For someone facing the death penalty, this rule matters a lot. It means their sentence gets a second, independent look from the highest court in the state before it can be carried out. This extra layer of review is meant to catch mistakes or unfairness that might have happened during sentencing.