By MICHAEL GORMLEY
Associated Press

ALBANY - Murderers won't get a break in New York.

The Legislature and Gov. David Paterson have agreed to close a loophole affecting criminals convicted a second time for murder or child sexual assault. Under previous legislation, those violent offenders could get parole credit for time served for a previous conviction.

In one example, the loophole could have allowed a parolee convicted of a new offense to apply 10 years that he served for his original crime to his new 20-years-to-life sentence. That would make the offender eligible for parole after just 10 years in prison on the latest conviction.

The new legislation agreed on Tuesday requires consecutive sentences. It also requires a prisoner to serve at least half his or her sentence before being eligible for medical parole, which is based on a grave illness. Prisoners will no longer be able to apply years served in prison for a prior offense toward getting a medical parole.

"This legislation will assure that those convicted will serve out their sentence intended by the court and also give piece of mind to the victims, their families, and our communities," Paterson said of his bill, which he made part of Tuesday's extraordinary session of the Legislature.

State law already requires nearly all repeat felons to serve consecutive terms without credit for time previously served in prison. But murderers, others convicted of the highest level A-1 felonies and second-time sexual assaults on children were inadvertently omitted. Some judges, however, knew of the loophole and specified that sentences had to be served consecutively.

"Judges have always had the power to order consecutive sentencing under such circumstances," said Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Manhattan Democrat. "By this legislation, we mandate this tougher sanction."