H-4384.1

HOUSE BILL 2910

ByRepresentatives Griffey, Caldier, and Irwin

AN ACT Relating to the conditional release of sexually violent predators to less restrictive alternatives; amending RCW 4.24.550, 71.09.092, 71.09.096, and 71.09.345; reenacting and amending RCW 71.09.020; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 2. RCW 4.24.550 and 2015 c 261 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) In addition to the disclosure under subsection (5) of this section, public agencies are authorized to release information to the public regarding sex offenders and kidnapping offenders when the agency determines that disclosure of the information is relevant and necessary to protect the public and counteract the danger created by the particular offender. This authorization applies to information regarding: (a) Any person adjudicated or convicted of a sex offense as defined in RCW 9A.44.128 or a kidnapping offense as defined by RCW 9A.44.128; (b) any person under the jurisdiction of the indeterminate sentence review board as the result of a sex offense or kidnapping offense; (c) any person committed as a sexually violent predator under chapter 71.09 RCW or as a sexual psychopath under chapter 71.06 RCW; (d) any person found not guilty of a sex offense or kidnapping offense by reason of insanity under chapter 10.77 RCW; and (e) any person found incompetent to stand trial for a sex offense or kidnapping offense and subsequently committed under chapter 71.05 or 71.34 RCW.

(2) Except for the information specifically required under subsection (5) of this section, the extent of the public disclosure of relevant and necessary information shall be rationally related to: (a) The level of risk posed by the offender to the community; (b) the locations where the offender resides, expects to reside, or is regularly found; and (c) the needs of the affected community members for information to enhance their individual and collective safety.

(3) Except for the information specifically required under subsection (5) of this section, local law enforcement agencies shall consider the following guidelines in determining the extent of a public disclosure made under this section: (a) For offenders classified as risk level I, the agency shall share information with other appropriate law enforcement agencies and, if the offender is a student, the public or private school regulated under Title 28A RCW or chapter 72.40 RCW which the offender is attending, or planning to attend. The agency may disclose, upon request, relevant, necessary, and accurate information to any victim or witness to the offense, any individual community member who lives near the residence where the offender resides, expects to reside, or is regularly found, and any individual who requests information regarding a specific offender; (b) for offenders classified as risk level II, the agency may also disclose relevant, necessary, and accurate information to public and private schools, child day care centers, family day care providers, public libraries, businesses and organizations that serve primarily children, women, or vulnerable adults, and neighbors and community groups near the residence where the offender resides, expects to reside, or is regularly found; (c) for offenders classified as risk level III, the agency may also disclose relevant, necessary, and accurate information to the public at large; (d) for offenders classified as risk level III and committed under chapter 71.09 RCW, the agency shall disclose information regarding civil commitment to the public at large including, but not limited to, status of total confinement, conditional release, and unconditional release, and hold a community notification meeting pursuant to the guidelines established under RCW 4.24.5501; and (((d)))(e) because more localized notification is not feasible and homeless and transient offenders may present unique risks to the community, the agency may also disclose relevant, necessary, and accurate information to the public at large for offenders registered as homeless or transient.

(4) The county sheriff with whom an offender classified as risk level III is registered shall release a sex offender community notification that conforms to the guidelines established under RCW 4.24.5501.

(5)(a) When funded by federal grants or other sources, the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs shall create and maintain a statewide registered kidnapping and sex offender web site, which shall be available to the public. The web site shall post all level III and level II registered sex offenders, level I registered sex offenders only during the time they are out of compliance with registration requirements under RCW 9A.44.130 or if lacking a fixed residence as provided in RCW 9A.44.130, and all registered kidnapping offenders in the state of Washington.

(i) For level III offenders, the web site shall contain, but is not limited to, the registered sex offender's name, relevant criminal convictions, description of prior sexual offenses, address by hundred block, physical description, civil commitment status and history, and photograph. The web site shall provide mapping capabilities that display the sex offender's address by hundred block on a map. The web site shall allow citizens to search for registered sex offenders within the state of Washington by county, city, zip code, last name, and address by hundred block.

(ii) For level II offenders, and level I sex offenders during the time they are out of compliance with registration requirements under RCW 9A.44.130, the web site shall contain, but is not limited to, the same information and functionality as described in (a)(i) of this subsection, provided that it is permissible under state and federal law. If it is not permissible, the web site shall be limited to the information and functionality that is permissible under state and federal law.

(iii) For kidnapping offenders, the web site shall contain, but is not limited to, the same information and functionality as described in (a)(i) of this subsection, provided that it is permissible under state and federal law. If it is not permissible, the web site shall be limited to the information and functionality that is permissible under state and federal law.

(b) Law enforcement agencies must provide information requested by the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs to administer the statewide registered kidnapping and sex offender web site.

(c)(i) Within five business days of the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs receiving any public record request under chapter 42.56 RCW for sex offender and kidnapping offender information, records or web site data it holds or maintains pursuant to this section or a unified sex offender registry, the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs shall refer the requester in writing to the appropriate law enforcement agency or agencies for submission of such a request. The Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs shall have no further obligation under chapter 42.56 RCW for responding to such a request.

(ii) This ((subparagraph))subsection (5)(c) ((of this section)) is remedial and applies retroactively.

(6)(a) Law enforcement agencies responsible for the registration and dissemination of information regarding offenders required to register under RCW 9A.44.130 shall assign a risk level classification to all offenders after consideration of: (i) Any available risk level classifications provided by the department of corrections, the department of social and health services, and the indeterminate sentence review board; (ii) the agency's own application of a sex offender risk assessment tool; and (iii) other information and aggravating or mitigating factors known to the agency and deemed rationally related to the risk posed by the offender to the community at large.

(b) A sex offender shall be classified as a risk level I if his or her risk assessment and other information or factors deemed relevant by the law enforcement agency indicate he or she is at a low risk to sexually reoffend within the community at large. A sex offender shall be classified as a risk level II if his or her risk assessment and other information or factors deemed relevant by the law enforcement agency indicate he or she is at a moderate risk to sexually reoffend within the community at large. A sex offender shall be classified as a risk level III if his or her risk assessment and other information or factors deemed relevant by the law enforcement agency indicate he or she is at a high risk to sexually reoffend within the community at large.

(c) The agency shall make a good faith effort to notify the public and residents within a reasonable period of time after the offender registers with the agency.

(d) Agencies may develop a process to allow an offender to petition for review of the offender's assigned risk level classification. The timing, frequency, and process for review are at the sole discretion of the agency.

(7) An appointed or elected public official, public employee, or public agency as defined in RCW 4.24.470, or units of local government and its employees, as provided in RCW 36.28A.010, are immune from civil liability for damages for any discretionary risk level classification decisions or release of relevant and necessary information, unless it is shown that the official, employee, or agency acted with gross negligence or in bad faith. The immunity in this section applies to risk level classification decisions and the release of relevant and necessary information regarding any individual for whom disclosure is authorized. The decision of a law enforcement agency or official to classify an offender to a risk level other than the one assigned by the department of corrections, the department of social and health services, or the indeterminate sentence review board, or the release of any relevant and necessary information based on that different classification shall not, by itself, be considered gross negligence or bad faith. The immunity provided under this section applies to the release of relevant and necessary information to other public officials, public employees, or public agencies, and to the general public.

(8) Except as may otherwise be provided by law, nothing in this section shall impose any liability upon a public official, public employee, or public agency for failing to release information authorized under this section.

(9) Nothing in this section implies that information regarding persons designated in subsection (1) of this section is confidential except as may otherwise be provided by law.

(10) When a law enforcement agency or official classifies an offender differently than the offender is classified by the end of sentence review committee at the time of the offender's release from confinement, the law enforcement agency or official shall notify the end of sentence review committee and the Washington state patrol and submit its reasons supporting the change in classification.

(11) As used in this section, "law enforcement agency" means a general authority Washington law enforcement agency as defined in RCW 10.93.020.

Sec. 3. RCW 71.09.020 and 2015 c 278 s 2 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "Department" means the department of social and health services.

(2) "Health care facility" means any hospital, hospice care center, licensed or certified health care facility, health maintenance organization regulated under chapter 48.46 RCW, federally qualified health maintenance organization, federally approved renal dialysis center or facility, or federally approved blood bank.

(3) "Health care practitioner" means an individual or firm licensed or certified to engage actively in a regulated health profession.

(4) "Health care services" means those services provided by health professionals licensed pursuant to RCW 18.120.020(4).

(5) "Health profession" means those licensed or regulated professions set forth in RCW 18.120.020(4).

(6) "Less restrictive alternative" means court-ordered treatment in a setting less restrictive than total confinement which satisfies the conditions set forth in RCW 71.09.092. A less restrictive alternative may not include placement in the community protection program as pursuant to RCW 71A.12.230 or placement to an adult family home as defined in RCW 70.128.010.

(7) "Likely to engage in predatory acts of sexual violence if not confined in a secure facility" means that the person more probably than not will engage in such acts if released unconditionally from detention on the sexually violent predator petition. Such likelihood must be evidenced by a recent overt act if the person is not totally confined at the time the petition is filed under RCW 71.09.030.

(8) "Mental abnormality" means a congenital or acquired condition affecting the emotional or volitional capacity which predisposes the person to the commission of criminal sexual acts in a degree constituting such person a menace to the health and safety of others.

(9) "Personality disorder" means an enduring pattern of inner experience and behavior that deviates markedly from the expectations of the individual's culture, is pervasive and inflexible, has onset in adolescence or early adulthood, is stable over time and leads to distress or impairment. Purported evidence of a personality disorder must be supported by testimony of a licensed forensic psychologist or psychiatrist.

(10) "Predatory" means acts directed towards: (a) Strangers; (b) individuals with whom a relationship has been established or promoted for the primary purpose of victimization; or (c) persons of casual acquaintance with whom no substantial personal relationship exists.

(11) "Prosecuting agency" means the prosecuting attorney of the county where the person was convicted or charged or the attorney general if requested by the prosecuting attorney, as provided in RCW 71.09.030.

(12) "Recent overt act" means any act, threat, or combination thereof that has either caused harm of a sexually violent nature or creates a reasonable apprehension of such harm in the mind of an objective person who knows of the history and mental condition of the person engaging in the act or behaviors.

(13) "Risk potential activity" or "risk potential facility" means an activity or facility that provides a higher incidence of risk to the public from persons conditionally released from the special commitment center. Risk potential activities and facilities include: Public and private schools, school bus stops, licensed day care and licensed preschool facilities, public parks, publicly dedicated trails, sports fields, playgrounds, recreational and community centers, churches, synagogues, temples, mosques, public libraries, public and private youth camps, and others identified by the department following the hearings on a potential site required in RCW 71.09.315. For purposes of this chapter, "school bus stops" does not include bus stops established primarily for public transit.

(14) "Secretary" means the secretary of social and health services or the secretary's designee.

(15) "Secure community transition facility" means a residential facility for persons civilly committed and conditionally released to a less restrictive alternative under this chapter. A secure community transition facility has supervision and security, and either provides or ensures the provision of sex offender treatment services. Secure community transition facilities include but are not limited to the facility established pursuant to RCW 71.09.250(1)(a)(i) and any community-based facilities established under this chapter ((and operated by the secretary or)), under contract with the secretary, or under any court-ordered placements resulting in more than one sexually violent predator in a secure facility.

(16) "Secure facility" means a residential facility for persons civilly confined under the provisions of this chapter that includes security measures sufficient to protect the community. Such facilities include total confinement facilities, secure community transition facilities, and ((any residence))individual residences used as a court-ordered placement under RCW 71.09.096.

(17) "Sexually violent offense" means an act committed on, before, or after July 1, 1990, that is: (a) An act defined in Title 9A RCW as rape in the first degree, rape in the second degree by forcible compulsion, rape of a child in the first or second degree, statutory rape in the first or second degree, indecent liberties by forcible compulsion, indecent liberties against a child under age fourteen, incest against a child under age fourteen, or child molestation in the first or second degree; (b) a felony offense in effect at any time prior to July 1, 1990, that is comparable to a sexually violent offense as defined in (a) of this subsection, or any federal or out-of-state conviction for a felony offense that under the laws of this state would be a sexually violent offense as defined in this subsection; (c) an act of murder in the first or second degree, assault in the first or second degree, assault of a child in the first or second degree, kidnapping in the first or second degree, burglary in the first degree, residential burglary, or unlawful imprisonment, which act, either at the time of sentencing for the offense or subsequently during civil commitment proceedings pursuant to this chapter, has been determined beyond a reasonable doubt to have been sexually motivated, as that term is defined in RCW 9.94A.030; or (d) an act as described in chapter 9A.28 RCW, that is an attempt, criminal solicitation, or criminal conspiracy to commit one of the felonies designated in (a), (b), or (c) of this subsection.

(18) "Sexually violent predator" means any person who has been convicted of or charged with a crime of sexual violence and who suffers from a mental abnormality or personality disorder which makes the person likely to engage in predatory acts of sexual violence if not confined in a secure facility.

(19) "Total confinement facility" means a secure facility that provides supervision and sex offender treatment services in a total confinement setting. Total confinement facilities include the special commitment center and any similar facility designated as a total confinement facility by the secretary.

(20) "Treatment" means the sex offender specific treatment program at the special commitment center or a specific course of sex offender treatment pursuant to RCW 71.09.092 (1) ((and (2)))through (3).

Sec. 4. RCW 71.09.092 and 2009 c 409 s 9 are each amended to read as follows:

Before the court may enter an order directing conditional release to a less restrictive alternative, it must find the following: (1) The person has progressed in the treatment provided at the special commitment center and the person's conditional release would not unduly place the community at risk; (2) if conditionally released, the person will be treated by a treatment provider who is qualified to provide such treatment in the state of Washington under chapter 18.155 RCW; (((2)))(3) the treatment provider has presented a specific course of treatment and has agreed to assume responsibility for such treatment and will report progress to the court on a regular basis, and will report violations immediately to the court, the prosecutor, the supervising community corrections officer, and the superintendent of the special commitment center; (((3)))(4) housing exists in Washington that is sufficiently secure to protect the community, and the person or agency providing housing to the conditionally released person has agreed in writing to accept the person, to provide the level of security required by the court, and immediately to report to the court, the prosecutor, the supervising community corrections officer, and the superintendent of the special commitment center if the person leaves the housing to which he or she has been assigned without authorization; (((4)))(5) the person is willing to comply with the treatment provider and all requirements imposed by the treatment provider and by the court; and (((5)))(6) the person will be under the supervision of the department of corrections and is willing to comply with supervision requirements imposed by the department of corrections.

Sec. 5. RCW 71.09.096 and 2015 c 278 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) If the court or jury determines that conditional release to a less restrictive alternative is in the best interest of the person and includes conditions that would adequately protect the community, and the court determines that the minimum conditions set forth in RCW 71.09.092 and in this section are met, the court shall enter judgment and direct a conditional release.

(2) A person who is granted conditional release shall be placed into a secure community transition facility before the person may be conditionally released to any other placement. If conditional release to a less restrictive alternative is revoked under RCW 71.09.098 or 71.09.112, and the person is remanded to the custody of the secretary in a total confinement facility under RCW 71.09.098(8), and the person becomes eligible and is subsequently granted another conditional release to a less restrictive alternative, the person shall be placed into a secure community transition facility before the person may be conditionally released to any other placement.

(3) The court shall impose any additional conditions necessary to ensure compliance with treatment and to protect the community. If the court finds that conditions do not exist that will both ensure the person's compliance with treatment and protect the community, then the person shall be remanded to the custody of the department of social and health services for control, care, and treatment in a secure facility as designated in RCW 71.09.060(1).

(((3)))(4) If the service provider designated by the court to provide inpatient or outpatient treatment or to monitor or supervise any other terms and conditions of a person's placement in a less restrictive alternative is other than the department of social and health services or the department of corrections, then the service provider so designated must agree in writing to provide such treatment, monitoring, or supervision in accord with this section. Any person providing or agreeing to provide treatment, monitoring, or supervision services pursuant to this chapter may be compelled to testify and any privilege with regard to such person's testimony is deemed waived.

(((4)))(5) Prior to authorizing any release to a less restrictive alternative, the court shall impose such conditions upon the person as are necessary to ensure the safety of the community. The court shall order the department of corrections to investigate the less restrictive alternative and recommend any additional conditions to the court. These conditions shall include, but are not limited to the following: Specification of residence, prohibition of contact with potential or past victims, prohibition of alcohol and other drug use, participation in a specific course of inpatient or outpatient treatment that may include monitoring by the use of polygraph and plethysmograph, monitoring through the use of global positioning ((satellite [global positioning system]))system technology, supervision by a department of corrections community corrections officer, a requirement that the person remain within the state unless the person receives prior authorization by the court, and any other conditions that the court determines are in the best interest of the person or others. A copy of the conditions of release shall be given to the person and to any designated service providers.

(((5)))(6)(a) Prior to authorizing release to a less restrictive alternative, the court shall consider whether it is appropriate to release the person to the person's county of commitment. To ensure equitable distribution of releases, and prevent the disproportionate grouping of persons subject to less restrictive orders in any one county, or in any one jurisdiction or community within a county, the legislature finds it is appropriate for releases to a less restrictive alternative to occur in the person's county of commitment, unless the court determines that the person's return to his or her county of commitment would be inappropriate considering any court-issued protection orders, victim safety concerns, the availability of appropriate treatment or facilities that would adequately protect the community, negative influences on the person, or the location of family or other persons or organizations offering support to the person. When the department or court assists in developing a placement under this section which is outside of the county of commitment, and there are two or more options for placement, it shall endeavor to develop the placement in a manner that does not have a disproportionate effect on a single county.

(b) If the committed person is not conditionally released to his or her county of commitment, the department shall provide the law and justice council of the county in which the person is conditionally released with notice and a written explanation.

(c) For purposes of this section, the person's county of commitment means the county of the court which ordered the person's commitment.

(d) This subsection (((5)))(6) does not apply to releases to a secure community transition facility under RCW 71.09.250.

(((6)))(7) Any service provider designated to provide inpatient or outpatient treatment shall monthly, or as otherwise directed by the court, submit to the court, to the department of social and health services facility from which the person was released, to the prosecuting agency, and to the supervising community corrections officer, a report stating whether the person is complying with the terms and conditions of the conditional release to a less restrictive alternative.

(((7)))(8) Each person released to a less restrictive alternative shall have his or her case reviewed by the court that released him or her no later than one year after such release and annually thereafter until the person is unconditionally discharged. Review may occur in a shorter time or more frequently, if the court, in its discretion on its own motion, or on motion of the person, the secretary, or the prosecuting agency so determines. The sole question to be determined by the court is whether the person shall continue to be conditionally released to a less restrictive alternative. The court in making its determination shall be aided by the periodic reports filed pursuant to subsection (((6)))(7) of this section and the opinions of the secretary and other experts or professional persons.

Sec. 6. RCW 71.09.345 and 2001 2nd sp.s. c 12 s 226 are each amended to read as follows:

Nothing in chapter 12, Laws of 2001 2nd sp. sess. shall operate to restrict a court's authority to make less restrictive alternative placements to a committed person's individual residence ((or to a setting less restrictive than a secure community transition facility)). A court-ordered less restrictive alternative placement to a committed person's individual residence ((is not a less restrictive alternative))constitutes a placement to a secure community transition facility.

--- END ---