SB 1329 – Collateral consequences of criminal convictions; Attorney General to identify and put on Internet.

SB 1329 requires the Attorney General to identify, collect, and make available on the Internet a list of constitutional, statutory and regulatory collateral consequences of a criminal conviction.  Collateral consequences are those consequences that arise as a result of a criminal conviction (such as employment barriers) but are not imprisonment, parole, probation, fines, forfeiture, restitution, etc.

Patron: A. Donald McEachin

On February 4th, 2009 this bill was reported from the Committee for Courts of Justice with substitution by a vote of 14-0.  On February 6th, the Senate voted to dispense with a constitutional reading by a vote of 39-0.

HB 1843, (Civil commitment of sexually violent predators; penalties)is reported from the Committee for Courts of Justice with substitute

HB 1843 was reported from the Committee for Courts of Justice with substitutes by a vote of 22-0 on February 4, 2009.  The House read the bill for the first time on February 6th.

HB 1843 makes a number of changes. It requires that courts retain records for certain sexual misdemeanors for 100 years rather than 10 years.  It allows access to juvenile courts and records of the Department of Juvenile Justice; addresses challenges to filing defects, including defendants under the Commitment Review Committee; and it removes the requirement that victims of certain crimes must have suffered physical bodily injury in order for certain prisoners to be referred to Commitment Review Committee.  HB 1843 also allows access to sealed records; extends from 60 to 90 days the time for a probable cause hearing and allowing the respondent to waive his right to such hearing; sets a standard for the court to find probable cause; allows hearings to be conducted using two-way electronic video and audio communications systems and telephonic communication for witnesses; and extends the number of days after the probable cause hearing for conduct of the trial from 90 to 120 days. 

HB 2310 passes House in block vote

HB 2310 passed the House in a block vote (99-0) on February 5th, 2009.  The bill will cross over to the Senate.

 

HB 2310 provides that any person, agency, or institution that may inspect juvenile case files shall be authorized to have copies made of such records, subject to any restrictions, conditions, or prohibitions that the court may impose.

SB1298 has been referred to the House Committee on Courts of Justice

SB1298, Allowing a court to reduce a felony to a misdemeanor after deferring adjudication when a juvenile was placed on probation and fulfills the terms and conditions of his probation, has  been referred to the House Committee on Courts of Justice.

SB 1377 Passes Senate, Will Cross Over to the House

SB 1377, providing that police and sheriff departments may release current information on juvenile arrests to law-enforcement agencies in other states, has been passed by the Senate in a 39-0 vote. It will now be heard by the House of Delegates. It has not yet been assigned to a House Committee.

Megan’s Law Not Deterrent Study Says – Richmond Times Dispatch February 7, 2009

Megan’s Law not deterrent, study says

 

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: February 7, 2009 TRENTON, N.J. — A federally funded study examining sex offenses in the state where Megan’s Law was created concluded that the law hasn’t deterred repeat offenses. The report released Thursday found that registering sex offenders in New Jersey makes them easier to find when they are accused of crimes but does little to alter the sex crimes committed or the number of victims. The study also suggests the costs associated with the laws might not be justified. The study estimated the cost of implementing Megan’s Law in New Jersey at $555,000 in 1995. By 2007, annual costs of maintaining the programs was about $4 million. New Jersey was among the first states to enact laws requiring community notification and sex-offender registration. The laws, now in all 50 states, are named for Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old New Jersey girl who was raped and killed in 1994 by a twice-convicted sex offender who lived near her home. Megan’s Law requires law-enforcement agencies to notify the public about sex offenders living in their communities. When the most dangerous offenders move to a neighborhood, police go door to door to notify citizens and past victims. Those considered to have a lower risk of re-offending are listed on a public Internet registry. The lowest-risk offenders must register but aren’t subject to notification laws. Megan’s mother, Maureen Kanka, said the laws never were intended to alter the behavior of sex offenders. “It was to provide an awareness to the public, which it has done,” Kanka said yesterday. “We never said it would stop them from going somewhere else and sexually abusing. Would having that knowledge have made a difference for my daughter? Absolutely. She’d have been alive and well.” But Kristen Zgoba, a lead author of the report and a research supervisor for the state Corrections Department, said increased awareness alone doesn’t result in safer communities. “There’s no other way to increase safety other than to decrease the likelihood of these crimes taking place,” she said. A public defender, Michael Buncher, said the money spent on Megan’s Law would be used better for improved supervision of sex offenders and sex-offender therapy in prisons. The report is among only a few to use hard data to evaluate the effect of the laws on the crime rate. Recent studies in New York and Arkansas have come to similar conclusions. Other studies used mostly anecdotal evidence to support the laws. The New Jersey study was done by the Department of Corrections with help from Rutgers University. It was funded by the National Institute of Justice.