S-4471               _______________________________________________

                                         SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL NO. 6332

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1990 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Law & Justice (originally sponsored by Senators Craswell, Owen, Thorsness, Metcalf, Smitherman, Barr, McCaslin, Newhouse, Benitz, Johnson, Anderson, Saling and Hayner)

Read first time 1/22/90.

AN ACT Relating to the voluntary 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 finds that sex offenders have a high probability of reoffending.  The legislature further finds that voluntary surgical castration is not cruel and unusual punishment.

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

          If, at any time between conviction of a sex offense and the time of sentencing for a sex offense, an offender is voluntarily surgically castrated, the court shall not impose a sentence greater than twenty-five percent of the presumptive sentence.  No castration shall be performed on any person convicted of a sex offense unless the person knowingly and voluntarily requests in writing that he be surgically castrated.  The court shall hold a hearing to ensure that an offender fully understands the legal, medical, emotional, and psychological consequences of castration.