FINAL BILL REPORT
2SSB 6259
PARTIAL VETO
C 3 L 90
BYSenate Committee on Ways & Means (originally sponsored by Senators Nelson, Talmadge, Patrick, Wojahn, Thorsness, Vognild, Bender, Warnke, Bauer, von Reichbauer, Gaspard, Madsen, Murray, Sutherland, Rasmussen, Fleming, Hansen, Conner and Kreidler; by request of Governor)
Changing provisions relating to criminal offenders.
Senate Committee on Law & Justice and Committee on Ways & Means
House Committe on Rules
SYNOPSIS AS ENACTED
BACKGROUND:
The Governor's Task Force on Community Protection was created following a brutal sexual assault upon a young child and the murder of a young woman in Seattle. The task force submitted to the Governor numerous proposals for statutory changes and funding programs for sex offenders and their victims. The proposals impact the criminal justice system for adults and juveniles and the civil and criminal commitment system dealing with insane and incompetent offenders.
SUMMARY:
Victim, Witness, and Police Notification Programs. The victim, witness, and police notification programs that currently exist for adult violent and sex offenders is used as a model to create new notification programs involving offenders in the custody of the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). The department must notify victims and witnesses of the release of sex and violent offenders who have been found not guilty by reason of insanity or incompetence to stand trial. Victims and witnesses must request notice of the release of such offenders, but the police do not have to request such notice.
For offenders convicted of a sex offense between June 30, 1984 and July 1, 1988, the Department of Corrections is to give written notification to the prosecuting attorney of the county where the person was convicted three months prior to release of such an offender. The department is to provide: (1) the person's name, offense history, and anticipated future residence; (2) a narrative describing the person's conduct during confinement and any treatment received; and (3) information indicating whether the department recommends filing a civil commitment petition. Authorization is also provided for the release of booking photos.
Immunity for Release of Information. Public agencies are expressly authorized to publicly release relevant information regarding sex offenders when the release is necessary for public protection. This provision will end July 1, 1991.
Public employees and agencies are immune from civil liability for a discretionary decision to release information regarding juvenile sex offenders and adult sex offenders committed to DSHS who are incompetent to stand trial or are insane. Immunity applies if the employee acts without gross negligence and believes that the release is necessary to protect the public. Any person who disseminates such information at the request of any public official, public employee, or public agency is immune from civil liability for damages.
Earned Early Release ("Good Time"). The maximum amount of earned early release a class A felony sex offender or a serious violent offender may earn is reduced from one-third to 15 percent of the sentence. The correctional agency may not credit the offender in advance of the offender earning good time. Counties may award good time to offenders in their custody.
Juvenile Justice Amendments. Juveniles convicted of sex offenses may be supervised for a period of up to two years. If a juvenile violates a condition of supervision, the juvenile may be returned to custody for up to the remainder of the time left on the sentence rather than the previous limit of 30 days.
A special sexual offender dispositional alternative is created for juvenile offenders. Juveniles convicted of certain sex offenses who have no prior history of sex offenses may be given a special dispositional alternative that includes a suspended sentence, supervision for two years, up to 30 days in custody, and treatment. A juvenile sex offender must obtain court approval for a change of sex offender treatment providers if the prosecutor and probation counselor object to the change. The treating therapist must be certified by the Department of Health as of July 1, 1991.
The age requirement for mandatory decline hearings, declining juvenile court jurisdiction, and transferring to adult court is lowered from age 16 to 15 for juveniles charged with a class A felony or with solicitation or conspiracy to commit a class A felony.
Registration of Sex Offenders. Adults or juveniles convicted of any sex offense must register with the county sheriff within 30 days of release from custody or within 45 days of establishing residence. If the offender moves into a new county, the offender must register in the new county. The sheriff must obtain fingerprints and a photograph of the offender. Failure to register is a class C felony if the person was convicted of a class A felony sex offense; otherwise, the failure is a gross misdemeanor.
Registration applies to persons who commit sex offenses after the effective date of this provision. These provisions apply retroactively if the offender is currently under the custody or supervision of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Social and Health Services.
The Washington State Patrol is to maintain a central registry of sex offenders. The State Patrol is required to reimburse the counties for the costs of processing sex offender registrations including taking the fingerprints and photographs. The court and the Department of Corrections are to provide defendants and inmates with notice of the duty to register. Individuals in charge of local jails are required to notify sex offenders in their custody of the registration requirements.
Persons convicted of a class C felony sex offense must be registered for a period of 10 years and persons convicted of a class B felony sex offense must be registered for 15 years. Unless a court relieves a person convicted of a class A felony offense, the person must always be registered. The 10 and 15 year periods run only if the offenders remain in the community without convictions for any new offenses within the time period.
The Department of Licensing is required to provide applicants for drivers' licenses with written information on sex offender registration requirements.
Victims' Compensation Fund. The eligibility requirement that victims report the crime to the police within 72 hours of its occurrence is extended to 12 months. In the case of victims of childhood criminal acts, the crime victims' compensation rights are deemed to accrue at the time the victim discovers or reasonably should have discovered the elements of the crime.
The $150,000 cap on medical benefits applies per injury or death rather than per victim. Payments for medical services in excess of the cap are to be made available if necessary for a previously accepted condition, to protect the life of the victim, or to prevent deterioration, when the payments are not available from another source.
Three different statutory limits on crime victims' compensation awards are increased. The limit on recovery for a single injury or death is increased from $15,000 to $30,000. For total permanent disability or death, the limit is increased from $20,000 to $40,000, and for total temporary disability, the limit is raised from $5,000 to $15,000.
Sexual Motivation in Criminal Cases. The prosecutor must file a special allegation of sexual motivation in any case when sufficient evidence exists to justify a finding that the offense was sexually motivated. "Sexual motivation" means that one of the purposes for which the defendant committed the crime was for the purposes of sexual gratification. The trier of fact shall make a finding whether the act was sexually motivated. The finding of sexual motivation may be an aggravating factor for an exceptional sentence, and will trigger the same consequences as any other sex offense, such as higher offender points for subsequent sex offenses, civil commitment, and eligibility or ineligibility for SSOSA or SSODA. The finding will also apply to juveniles. Examples include assault with intent to commit rape, and burglary with intent to commit rape. The state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the offense was committed with sexual motivation.
Criminal Sentencing. The classifications for certain sex offenses are upgraded and thus increase the statutory maximum for the particular offense. Second degree rape, rape of a child in the second degree, and first degree child molestation are raised from class B to class A felonies. Indecent exposure is raised to a class C felony from a gross misdemeanor if the exposure is to a child under age 14 and if the offender has a previous conviction for exposure or a sex offense.
The mandatory term of confinement for first degree rape is increased from three to five years. The maximum time that first-time sex offenders may be required to undergo available outpatient treatment is increased from two to five years.
The sentencing grid is modified to create 15 seriousness levels rather than 14. Revised seriousness level XI has a new midpoint of 7.5 years for a first-time offender and the new seriousness level XII has a midpoint of nine years for first-time offenders. First degree assault is raised to seriousness level XII to remain in proportion with the increases in the first degree rape of a child and first degree rape.
In determining a sex offender's score, other current sex offenses and prior adult and juvenile sex offenses will count three points. If an adult sex offender has prior convictions for violent juvenile offenses with separate victims, the adjudications no longer merge but count separately in the offender score. All prior sex offenses are included in the scoring of adult sex offenders.
Offenders must serve consecutive sentences when convicted of two or more current serious violent offenses.
When considering whether to impose a sentence under the Special Sexual Offender Sentencing Alternative (SSOSA), the court must consider the victim's opinion regarding whether the offender should receive the treatment disposition. The group of offenders who are eligible for SSOSA is expanded to include offenders convicted of sexually motivated offenses, unless the offenses are sex offenses that are also serious violent offenses. The group of ineligible offenders is also expanded to include sex offenders who have a prior conviction for a sexually motivated offense. Imposition of SSOSA for first-time offenders is discretionary for offenders with sentences of up to eight years instead of six because of the increase in standard ranges. Supervision is increased from up to two years to up to three years, or the length of the suspended sentence, whichever is longer. The offender must not change treatment providers without first notifying the court, community corrections officer, and the prosecutor, and must obtain court approval if the prosecutor and the community corrections officer object.
A "treatment termination" hearing is established to review the offender's progress in treatment three months before treatment will end to determine whether conditions of supervision should be modified, and either terminate treatment or extend treatment for up to the remaining period of supervision. Non-indigent defendants must pay for the costs of additional evaluations. Sex offender therapists who examine and treat sex offenders under this sentencing alternative must be certified by the Department of Health by July 1, 1991. The therapists are subject to the Uniform Disciplinary Act.
The Department of Corrections must supervise serious violent and sex offenders for two years or up to the length of the offender's earned early release, whichever is longer. The department and the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board must give the greatest weight to public safety when making discretionary decisions regarding release and supervision of sexually violent prisoners.
Civil Commitment. A new civil commitment procedure is created for "sexually violent predators." An offender may be committed under these provisions if: (1) the sentence for a sexually violent offense has ended or is about to end; or (2) the person is charged with a sexually violent offense and is found not guilty by reason of insanity, or is incompetent to stand trial and is about to be released; and (3) it appears that the person may be a sexually violent predator.
The prosecutor may file a petition for civil commitment. The judge must review the petition and determine whether probable cause exists to believe that the person is a sexually violent predator. If so, the person is taken into custody and transferred to an appropriate facility for an evaluation.
Within 45 days after the filing of the petition, the court is required to conduct a trial to determine whether the person is a sexually violent predator. The person, prosecuting attorney or Attorney General, or judge may demand a jury trial. If the court or jury determines beyond a reasonable doubt that the person is a sexually violent predator, then the person is committed to DSHS but cannot be confined in a facility located on the grounds of any state mental facility or regional habilitation center due to the lack of necessary security. If the person has previously been found incompetent to stand trial and is about to be or has been released, the court must first determine beyond a reasonable doubt whether the person did commit the act or acts charged.
A person committed to DSHS under these provisions is entitled to an examination of his or her mental condition at least once a year. If the Secretary of DSHS determines that the person's disorder is changed to the extent that the person is not likely to commit sexually violent predatory acts, then the secretary must authorize the person to petition the court for release. If the prosecutor opposes the DSHS-authorized petition, he or she must show beyond a reasonable doubt that the person is not safe to be at large and is likely to commit predatory acts of sexual violence.
The Secretary of DSHS is required to provide annual notice of the person's right to petition for release. The notice must contain a waiver of the right to petition. If the person does not affirmatively waive the right, then the court is required to set a show cause hearing on the issue. The person does not have a right to be present but does have the right to an attorney. If the court determines that probable cause exists and believes that the person should be released, the court will set a hearing on the matter. The committed person is entitled to all the constitutional protections afforded at a trial. The state bears the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the committed person should not be released.
The care and treatment of civilly committed sexually violent predators are required to conform to constitutional standards. This commitment procedure also applies to juveniles.
Grant Programs and Victims' Advocacy. A grant program is established in the Department of Community Development to enhance the funding for treating the victims of sex offenders. Applicants are required to provide evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposal and how the funding criteria will be met. Applicants are also required to demonstrate active participation of the local community and its commitment to providing effective treatment services for victims.
The minimum requirements for the content of the grant application are outlined and the awards are to be made on a competitive basis. To assist the department in awarding the grants, a peer review committee is established comprised of the executive administrator for the Crime Victims' Advocacy Office and individuals experienced in the treatment of victims of predatory violent sex offenders.
A Crime Victims' Advocacy Office is established in the Office of the Governor to provide advocacy services to crime victims. The Crime Victims' Advocacy Office is to ask communities for suggestions on state practices, policies and priorities that would help communities treat victims. Recommendations are to be forwarded to the Legislature and Governor.
Background Checks. The list of prospective employees subject to background checks is expanded to cover certificated employees of school districts and any current school district employee who has applied for transfer. A new crime of felony indecent exposure is added to the list of crimes covered by background checks. Express imposition of liability is removed from business organizations which violate the requirement that the background checks are only to be used to make initial employment decisions. School district employees who transfer from one school district to another may be subjected to another background check.
Joint CPS/Law Enforcement Pilot Project. A pilot project is established in Spokane and King Counties for the joint investigation of child abuse and sexual assault cases by personnel from law enforcement and Child Protective Services.
Treatment for Abusive Person Removed from Home. A new program is established to provide that whenever a person acting in a parental role has physically or sexually abused a child and has been removed from the home pursuant to a court order under Chapter 13.34 RCW, a person is required to complete a treatment and education program as a condition of returning to the home where the child resides. DSHS is required to advise the court as to the appropriate treatment and education requirements for the program, and is to provide referrals and monitor the individual's progress and to provide the court with information and recommendations. The person is to pay for the treatment on the basis of his or her financial ability.
Identification and Treatment of Sexually Abused Children. The Department of Social and Health Services is required to provide comprehensive sexual assault services to sexually abused children, depending on available funds. Services are to be provided by community organizations and private service providers.
DSHS is required to establish a system of early identification and referral to treatment for child victims of sexual assault or sexual abuse.
VOTES ON FINAL PASSAGE:
Senate 48 0
House 96 0 (House amended)
Senate (Senate refused to concur)
Free Conference Committee
House 94 0
Senate 45 0
EFFECTIVE:June 7, 1990 (with exceptions)
Partial Veto Summary: The provision establishing the Crime Victims' Advocacy Office in the Governor's Office is vetoed. (See VETO MESSAGE)