Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:
"NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature recognizes that male correctional officers conducting body searches of incarcerated females inflicts psychological pain in violation of the eighth amendment. Jordan v. Gardner, 986 F.2d 1521 (9th Cir. 1993). The legislature further recognizes that the provisions of this act could be interpreted as inconsistent with the court's ruling in Gardner.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter
70.48 RCW to read as follows:
(1) Local jail administrators shall develop and implement policies and procedures for conducting a strip search of individuals confined at the jail that are, at a minimum, in compliance with this section and substantial compliance with the federal prison rape elimination act, 34 U.S.C. Sec. 30301 et seq., and its regulations, as they existed on January 1, 2025.
(a) A strip search may not be conducted on an individual confined at the jail for the sole purpose of determining the individual's genital status. If the individual's genital status is unknown, it may be determined during conversations with the individual, by reviewing medical records, or, if necessary, by learning that information as part of a broader medical examination conducted in private by a medical practitioner.
(b) A jail shall train corrections personnel in how to conduct strip searches, including cross-gender strip searches and strip searches of transgender and intersex individuals, in a professional and respectful manner, and in the least intrusive manner possible, consistent with security needs of the correctional facility.
(c) Strip searches must conform with the requirements of RCW
10.79.100. Further, strip searches of individuals at the jail must be conducted by the individual's preferred gender of correctional staff or other available trained public safety staff.
(d) The jail shall implement policies and procedures that enable individuals confined at the jail to shower, perform bodily functions, and change clothing without their breasts, buttocks, or genitalia in view of correctional personnel, except in exigent circumstances or when such viewing is incidental to routine cell checks. Such policies and procedures shall require staff to announce their presence when entering a housing unit except in exigent circumstances.
(e) The inability of a jail to make available correctional or public safety staff who are trained to perform strip searches of individuals is not an exigent circumstance justifying a strip search inconsistent with the stated preference of the individual.
(2) Strip searches may not be conducted based solely on the gender designation of the facility without considering other factors including but not limited to the gender identity or expression of the individual or the individual's preference regarding the gender of the person conducting the search.
(3) Strip searches may be conducted by an individual of a gender other than the stated preference of the individual only when exigent circumstances exist requiring immediate action to respond to a threat to the security or institutional order of a correctional facility.
(4) Local jails shall adopt policies and procedures that comply with the requirements of this section by September 1, 2026. Consistent with RCW
70.48.071, units of local government who operate a jail shall adopt and implement standards that comply with the requirements of this section by December 31, 2026.
(5) Nothing in this section may be interpreted as to authorize or require a jail to compel any correctional personnel or public safety personnel to:
(a) Disclose their gender identity; or
(b) Conduct a strip search inconsistent with the correctional staff's gender identity.
(6) For the purposes of this section:
(a) "Gender identity" has the same meaning as defined in RCW
74.09.875.
(b) "Strip search" has the same meaning as defined in RCW
10.79.070.
Sec. 3. RCW
10.79.100 and 1983 1st ex.s. c 42 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) Persons conducting a strip search shall not touch the person being searched except as reasonably necessary to effectuate the strip search of the person.
(2) Any body cavity search must be performed under sanitary conditions and conducted by a physician, registered nurse, or ((
physician's))
physician assistant, licensed to practice in this state, who is trained in the proper medical process and the potential health problems associated with a body cavity search. No health professional authorized by this subsection to conduct a body cavity search shall be held liable in any civil action if the search is conducted in a manner that meets the standards and requirements of RCW
4.24.290 and
7.70.040.
(3) Except as provided in subsection (7) of this section, a strip search or body cavity search, as well as presearch undressing or postsearch dressing, shall occur at a location made private from the observation of persons not physically conducting the search. ((A strip search or body cavity search shall be performed or observed only by persons of the same sex as the person being searched, except for licensed medical professionals as required by subsection (2) of this section.))
(4) Except as provided in subsection (5) of this section, no person may be present or observe during the search unless the person is necessary to conduct the search or to ensure the safety of those persons conducting the search.
(5) Nothing in this section prohibits a person upon whom a body cavity search is to be performed from having a readily available person of his or her choosing present at the time the search is conducted. However, the person chosen shall not be a person being held in custody by a law enforcement agency.
(6) RCW
10.79.080 and this section shall not be interpreted as expanding or diminishing the authority of a law enforcement officer with respect to searches incident to arrest or investigatory stop in public.
(7) A strip search of a person housed in a holding, detention, or local correctional facility to search for and seize a weapon may be conducted at other than a private location if there arises a specific threat to institutional security that reasonably requires such a search or if all persons in the facility are being searched for the discovery of weapons or contraband.
(8) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a strip search shall be performed only by persons pursuant to section 2(1)(c) of this act.
(9) Strip searches may be conducted by an individual other than the stated preference of the individual only when exigent circumstances exist requiring immediate action to respond to a threat to the security or institutional order of a facility.
(10) Nothing in this section may be interpreted as to authorize or require a jail to compel any correctional personnel or public safety personnel to:
(a) Disclose their gender identity; or
(b) Conduct a strip search inconsistent with the correctional staff's gender identity.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter
70.48 RCW to read as follows:
(1) A jail, as defined in RCW
70.48.020, corrections personnel, and public safety personnel shall not be liable for any claim alleging sexual misconduct or custodial sexual misconduct pursuant to RCW
9A.44.170 if the conduct is mandated pursuant to RCW
10.79.100 and section 2 of this act but is otherwise lawful.
(2) The attorney general of the state of Washington shall fully indemnify and defend a jail, as defined in RCW
70.48.020, corrections personnel, and public safety personnel in any federal litigation arising out of a claim of sexual misconduct if the conduct is mandated pursuant to RCW
10.79.100 and section 2 of this act but is otherwise lawful."
• Requires that strip searches at jails be conducted by an individual's preferred gender of correctional staff or other available trained public safety staff, rather than requiring that a strip search of transgender or intersex individuals to be conducted by a medical professional, female staff only, a person whose gender is of the searched person's choosing, or in accordance with the individual's stated gender identity.
• Requires jails to implement policies and procedures that enable confined individuals to shower, perform bodily functions, and change clothing without their breasts, buttocks, or genitalia in view of correctional personnel, except in exigent circumstances or when such viewing is incidental to routine cell checks, rather than requiring that jails implement such policies that enable confined individuals to engage in the conduct without nonmedical staff of the opposite gender viewing their breasts, buttocks, or genitalia except in exigent circumstances or when such viewing is incidental to routine cell checks.
• Provides that strip searches may be conducted by an individual of a gender other than the stated preference of the individual, rather than an individual of a different gender, only when exigent circumstances exist requiring immediate action to respond to a threat to the security or institutional order of a correctional facility.
• Requires local jails to adopt policies and procedures that comply with section 2 by September 1, 2026, and requires that units of local government who operate a jail adopt and implement standards that comply with section 2 by December 31, 2026, rather than September 1, 2025.
• Prohibits jails from compelling correctional personnel or public safety personnel to disclose their gender identity or conduct a strip search inconsistent with the correctional staff's gender identity.
• Adds language providing that male correctional officers conducting body searches of incarcerated females inflicts psychological pain in violation of the Eighth Amendment and that the provisions of this act could be interpreted as inconsistent with the court's ruling in Jordan v. Gardner, 986 F.2d 1521 (9th Cir. 1993).
• Provides that jails, corrections personnel, and public safety personnel may not be liable for any claim alleging sexual misconduct or custodial sexual misconduct if the conduct is mandated pursuant to the act but otherwise lawful.