Relating to the rights of sexual assault survivors, and making appropriations

The bill defines “kit” to mean a sexual assault forensic evidence kit containing a human biological specimen collected by a medical provider during a forensic medical evidentiary examination from an alleged sexual assault survivor. SURVIVOR RIGHTS. The bill provides that a survivor has the right to be free from intimidation, harassment, and abuse. During the course of any judicial proceeding, a court shall make reasonable efforts to provide the survivor and the survivor’s family members, friends, and witnesses with a secure waiting area or room that is separate from the waiting area for the alleged perpetrator and the alleged perpetrator’s family members, friends, witnesses, and attorneys; and separate from the county attorney’s office. The bill provides that a survivor has the right to be treated with fairness and respect for the survivor’s privacy and dignity. During the course of any judicial proceeding, a court shall, upon the request of the survivor, clear the courtroom of all persons when the survivor is testifying regarding the case in any civil or criminal trial, except that parties to the case and their immediate families or guardians, attorneys and their secretaries, officers of the court, jurors, members of the media, court reporters, and, at the request of the survivor, witnesses designated by the county attorney may remain in the courtroom. The bill provides that the survivor shall not be required to submit to a polygraph examination as a prerequisite to filing an accusatory pleading. The bill provides that upon request of a survivor, a law enforcement agency shall inform the survivor of the status of analyzing the kit evidence or other crime scene evidence from the survivor’s case. The law enforcement agency may, at its discretion, require that the survivor’s request be in writing. The bill further provides that the law enforcement agency shall respond to the victim’s request with either an oral or written communication, or by electronic mail, if an electronic mail address is available. COUNSELOR —— RIGHTS. The bill provides that a survivor has the right to consult with a counselor during any medical evidentiary examination, or during any interview about a sexual assault with a peace officer, county attorney, or defense attorney. A survivor retains this right even if the survivor has waived the right in a previous examination or interview. The bill provides that communications between a survivor and a counselor are confidential and privileged, including information disclosed in the presence of any third persons conducting a medical evidentiary examination or a law enforcement interview. The bill provides that a survivor retains the right to have a counselor present during all stages of any medical examination, investigation, or other interaction with representatives from the legal or criminal justice systems. SURVIVOR NOTIFICATION DOCUMENT. The bill requires the department of justice to develop a survivor notification document to be distributed by a peace officer and a medical provider upon initial contact with a survivor. The survivor notification document shall be in clear language that is comprehensible to a person proficient in English at the fifth grade level, accessible to persons with visual disabilities, and available in all major languages of the state. PEACE OFFICER OR COUNTY ATTORNEY INTERACTION. The bill provides that upon initial interaction with a survivor a peace officer or county attorney shall inform the survivor of the following rights: to receive a survivor notification document if the survivor has not already received a survivor notification document or does not remember receiving a survivor notification document; to consult with a counselor during any interview by a peace officer, county attorney, or defense attorney, unless no counselor can be summoned in a reasonably timely manner; and to be interviewed by a peace officer or county attorney of the same gender or opposite gender as the survivor, unless no such officer or county attorney is reasonably available. The bill also provides that a peace officer shall, upon written request by a survivor, furnish a free, complete, and unaltered copy of all law enforcement reports concerning the case, at the time the investigation has been closed by the law enforcement agency. MEDICAL PROVIDER INTERACTION. The bill provides that a medical provider shall not charge a survivor for the cost of the medical evidentiary examination portion of the examination either directly or indirectly. A medical provider shall provide contraception to a female survivor, if the survivor so chooses, within four hours of the medical examination, and at no cost to the survivor. Prior to a medical provider commencing a medical evidentiary examination of a survivor, the bill provides that a survivor shall be informed of the survivor’s rights by the medical provider. The survivor shall be entitled to the following: to receive a survivor notification document; to consult with a counselor before the commencement of the medical evidentiary examination, unless no counselor can be summoned in a reasonably timely manner; to know the ramifications of delaying the medical evidentiary examination if a counselor is unable to be summoned in a timely manner; and to shower, at no cost, unless showering facilities are not available after the medical evidentiary examination. The bill provides that a medical provider, upon conducting a medical evidentiary examination, shall collect the evidence in a sexual assault forensic evidence kit. The bill requires the following: the kit shall be delivered to the law enforcement agency believed to have jurisdiction over the sexual assault within hours of collecting any sexual assault forensic evidence; the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the assault shall deliver the kit to the laboratory as soon as possible or within five days of receiving the kit, unless the survivor requests in writing for the laboratory to defer analysis of the evidence; the laboratory shall retain the kit for a minimum of years before it is destroyed, or until the survivor reaches years of age if the survivor was a minor when the assault occurred; the laboratory that receives a kit shall analyze that evidence and upload any available DNA profiles into the federal combined DNA indexed system, unless the survivor has requested in writing for the laboratory to defer analysis of that evidence; if a law enforcement agency or laboratory intends to destroy or otherwise dispose of a kit before the law enforcement agency shall notify the survivor in writing before that evidence is destroyed; and a survivor has the right to be informed, upon the survivor’s request, of the results of the analysis of the survivor’s sexual assault forensic evidence. The bill provides that a defendant or person accused or convicted of a crime against the survivor shall have no standing to object to any failure to comply with the requirements of the bill. The bill provides that the kit shall not be used to prosecute a survivor for any misdemeanor crimes, or serve as a basis to search for further evidence of any unrelated misdemeanor crimes. The bill provides that failure to comply with the requirements under the bill does not constitute grounds in any civil or criminal proceeding for challenging the validity of a database match or of any database information, and any evidence of that DNA record shall not be excluded by a court on those grounds. The bill provides that the kit shall not be used to prosecute the survivor for any misdemeanor crimes. KIT TRACKING SYSTEM. The bill requires the tracking system to do the following: track the location and status of a kit throughout the state, including the initial collection in examinations performed by a medical provider, the receipt and storage at a law enforcement agency, the receipt and analysis at the laboratory or other qualified laboratory, the storage, and the destruction after completion of testing. The tracking system established by the bill shall also allow the entities in the custody of a sexual assault forensic evidence kit to update and track the status and location of the kit, allow survivors to anonymously track or receive updates regarding the status of the testing of the kit, and use electronic technology allowing for continuous access to the tracking system. The bill provides that the department of justice, in cooperation with the department of public safety, shall submit an annual report relating to the tracking system beginning January 15, 2020, and every January 15, thereafter, to the general assembly, and shall publish the report on the internet site of the department of justice. The report shall include statistics from the previous calendar year including: the total number of kits in the system statewide; the total number of kits tested; the number of kits added, including separate sets of data by jurisdiction; and the total number of kits that remain untested, including separate sets of data by jurisdiction. LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY —— SEXUAL ASSAULTS AFTER JANUARY 1, 2020. The bill provides that a law enforcement agency shall do the following on or after January 1, 2020: ensure that a rapid turnaround DNA program is in place; take possession of the evidence from the medical provider and submit it to the laboratory as soon as possible or within five days after receiving the kit; assign a criminal complaint number to the evidence within five days after receiving the kit if the survivor has given written consent to file a criminal complaint; notify another law enforcement agency that the agency has jurisdiction over the sexual assault within five days of making that determination; and notify the survivor within five days of receiving a kit that the kit has not been submitted to the laboratory and the reasons for not submitting the kit. STATE CRIMINALISTICS LABORATORY —— RECEIVING SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT AFTER JANUARY 1, 2020. A laboratory that receives a kit on or after January 1, 2020, shall do the following: process sexual assault forensic evidence, and if a DNA profile is created, the laboratory shall upload the profile into the federal DNA combined index system as soon as practically possible after being notified about the presence of DNA, unless the survivor has requested the laboratory defer analysis. TASK FORCE. The bill establishes a survivors of sexual assault task force. The task force shall be staffed by the department of justice. The bill provides that the task force shall consist of four ex officio, nonvoting legislative members and voting members from various stakeholder agencies and organizations. The task force shall study nationally recognized best practices and make recommendations regarding the following: the development and implementation of an effective mechanism for submitting, tracking, and investigating complaints regarding the handling of and response to sexual assault-related crimes by any agency or organization involved in the handling or response; the necessity of expanding the right to a counselor beyond the medical provider and law enforcement interview settings; the ongoing evaluation of the implementation of the survivor rights enumerated under the bill, including the scope and need for such rights, and how to best accomplish implementing the rights; and whether the task force should continue its work after the issuance of the report. The bill provides that the task force shall collect data regarding reporting of a sexual assault, including arrests, prosecution rates, access to sexual assault victims services, and any other data important for its deliberations and recommendations. If such data does not exist, the bill requires that the task force shall encourage its creation and maintenance by the department of justice. By January 1, 2020, and every five years thereafter, the bill provides that the task force shall produce a report that includes findings and recommendations. The bill requires that the task force submit the report to the general assembly, the governor, the department of justice, the commissioner of public safety, and to victims’ rights organizations and rape crisis centers as determined by the task force. The bill requires the task force to convene every five years until it is determined that all rights described within the bill have been effectively implemented. A determination of effective implementation of the rights described in the bill and whether to reconvene the task force shall be made by a majority vote of the current members of the task force prior to adopting the final report. APPROPRIATIONS. The bill appropriates $5,000 from the general fund of the state to the department of justice for each of the next five fiscal years, for creating the survivor notification document and maintaining the sexual assault survivors task force and other related matters.