A bill aimed at increasing prison time for inmates under certain conditions has unanimously passed in a state Senate committee, and will now move to the whole Senate for a vote.

House Bill 1855, known as Markie's Law, was written by state Rep. Aaron Bernstine, R-10th, in response to allegations that a parolee killed a New Castle boy last summer. It passed the House in December.

On Wednesday, the bill moved closer to becoming law after it passed the Senate Judiciary Committee. If the legislation clears the Senate, it will be sent to Gov. Tom Wolf to be signed into law.

The bill would deny parole for inmates at the expiration of their minimum sentence if the inmate was convicted of a violent offense or an obstruction of justice while incarcerated.

The bill also aims to increase minimum prison sentences by two years for each additional violent offense an inmate commits while incarcerated. A third year would be added if an inmate attempted to escape prison, smuggle contraband or retaliate against witnesses.

Bernstine said he anticipated a full vote to be taken next week.

“This is a good, common-sense legislation aimed at accountability,” he said, noting that he was confident the bill would pass.

Bernstine recalled the parolee who led to the creation of the bill, which was named after the late Mark Mason of New Castle.

After serving a lengthy stint for a 1999 homicide in New Castle, Keith Burley Jr., 43, of Edinburg, Lawrence County, was released from prison March 28, 2019.

Several months later, he was accused of repeatedly stabbing Mason, his girlfriend's 8-year-old son, while apparently telling the boy to “die,” according to authorities.

Burley's case in the murder is ongoing and his next court appearance is scheduled for September. He faces a number of charges including criminal homicide and a couple of felony kidnapping counts. Burley is being held in Mercer County Jail after his bond was denied July 11, 2019. His court-appointed lawyer, Thomas Farrell, declined to comment on the case.

Markie's Law was inspired by Burley's actions while he was incarcerated. He assaulted another prisoner while serving his 1999 homicide conviction, leading to charges of aggravated assault and assault by a prisoner.

In a Pennsylvania Department of Corrections report released after the death of the boy, Burley was cited often for fighting and assault, and received 17 misconducts during the first 13 years he was in prison.

But in the last seven years of his prison stay, Burley had a clean record with no reported misconducts, according to the report.

The report noted that Burley completed therapeutic and violence prevention courses, and earned his GED.

“He wasn't even safe around others in prison and we let him out,” Bernstine said Wednesday. “This bill doesn't fix every issue, but it makes the streets safer and it makes prisons safer.”

Burley's case also led the state's Department of Corrections to consider a reappraisal of the parole system.

In a 33-page report, the state's Department of Corrections released its opinion that a spike in murder investigations involving parolees was not indicative of a growing trend.

However, the report did “identify gaps in policies and practice that should be addressed.”

“Violent individuals who are sent to prison and continue to commit violent acts while incarcerated should not be released on the streets after serving the bare minimum of their sentence,” said Bernstine. “These individuals are a danger to society, and the death of Markie Mason is a clear and tragic example of that.”