S-3796               _______________________________________________

                                                   SENATE BILL NO. 6309

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1990 Regular Session

By Senators Saling, Anderson, Lee, Johnson, Thorsness, Sellar, McCaslin, Benitz, Metcalf, Craswell and Barr

Read first time 1/10/90 and referred to Committee on  Law & Justice.

AN ACT Relating to the mandatory castration of sex offenders; adding a new section to chapter 9.94A RCW; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature recognizes that the crimes of rape in the first degree and rape of a child in the first degree are among the most offensive and outrageous crimes in our society.  The emotional damage to the victims of these crimes, and to the families and friends of the victims, is not only of the most severe nature, but is also everlasting.

          There is statistical evidence that persons who commit these offenses have a high probability of reoffending if the only punishment for their offense is incarceration without medical treatment.  The legislature finds that offenders who are surgically castrated are better able to reenter society and pose less risk of reoffending.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 9.94A RCW to read as follows:

          Every offender who is convicted of rape in the first degree or rape of a child in the first degree shall be surgically castrated.  Upon completion of the surgery, the court may reduce the offender's presumptive sentence for the offense by up to fifty percent.