Bill Text: HI HB1907 | 2016 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit; Reporting; Attorney General; Sexual Assault; Forensic Evidence; Appropriation ($)
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-3)
Status: (Passed) 2016-07-06 - Act 207, 07/05/2016 (Gov. Msg. No. 1309). [HB1907 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2016-HB1907-Amended.html
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
1907 |
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2016 |
H.D. 2 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO SEXUAL ASSAULT.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. Chapter 844D, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
"§844D- Sexual assault kit tracking program. (a) The department, in consultation with the department of the attorney general, shall establish a sexual assault kit tracking program to ensure that sexual assault kits are obtained and analyzed in a timely manner. The program shall require that:
(1) Beginning July 1, 2016, any law enforcement agency that receives a sexual assault kit obtained in connection with the investigation of a criminal case shall submit that sexual assault kit within ten business days of receipt to a laboratory authorized to analyze crime scene samples under section 844D-51;
(2) Any authorized laboratory that receives a sexual assault kit from a law enforcement agency shall complete analysis of that sexual assault kit within six months of receipt; provided that sufficient staffing and resources are available;
(3) The results of all sexual assault kits submitted for analysis and analyzed shall be uploaded, pursuant to rules and internal operations established by the department, to the state DNA database and data bank identification program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System;
(4) Any law enforcement agency that receives a sexual assault kit obtained in connection with the investigation of a criminal case shall provide written notice annually to the department of the attorney general, in a form and manner prescribed by the department of the attorney general, stating the number of sexual assault kits related to a criminal investigation in the custody of the department, or a designated entity, that have not been submitted to a laboratory for analysis; and
(5) Beginning July 1, 2016, no law enforcement agency shall release a sexual assault kit to a laboratory for testing unless it has received prior written authorization from the complainant or the complainant's parent or legal guardian, if the complainant is a minor. The law enforcement agency shall retain the written authorization.
(b) The department of the attorney general shall make arrangements with one or more laboratories authorized to analyze crime scene samples under section 844D-51 to ensure that all sexual assault kits that were collected prior to July 1, 2016, and that are the subject of a criminal investigation are analyzed and that the results are entered into the state DNA database and data bank identification program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System.
(c) The failure of a law enforcement agency to submit a sexual assault kit collected on or before July 1, 2016, pursuant to subsection (b) shall in no way alter the authority of the law enforcement agency to submit the sexual assault kit, the authority of a laboratory to accept and analyze the sexual assault kit, or the authority of the department to maintain or upload the results into the state DNA database and data bank identification program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System.
(d) All sexual assault kit evidence submitted for analysis pursuant to this section shall be accompanied by the following signed certification:
"This evidence is being submitted by (name of investigating law enforcement agency) in connection with a prior or current criminal investigation."
(e) Evidence derived from the analysis of any sexual assault kit is not made inadmissible in court by the fact that it was not processed and analyzed within the timeframes required by this section.
(f) If the department receives written confirmation from the investigating law enforcement agency or the department otherwise determines that a record that has been uploaded into the state DNA database and data bank identification program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System was not connected to a criminal investigation, the record shall be expunged from the state DNA database and data bank identification program pursuant to rules and procedures established by the department and from the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System. The failure to expunge a record or strictly comply with this subsection shall not be grounds for challenging the validity of a state DNA database and data bank identification program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System match or other information, and evidence based upon or derived from the state DNA database and data bank identification program and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Combined DNA Index System shall not be excluded by a court for these reasons.
(g) The department of the attorney general shall adopt rules necessary to carry out the purposes of this section."
SECTION 2. Section 844D-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending the definitions of "print impression", "sample", and "specimen" to read as follows:
""Print impression" means any
fingerprint, thumbprint, palm print, or set of fingerprints or palm prints
designated in the department's rules or internal regulations [adopted
pursuant to section 844D‑3].
"Sample" means human biologic
material collected in a manner specified in the department's rules or internal
regulations [adopted pursuant to section 844D‑3], including but
not limited to, saliva collected by means of buccal swab.
"Specimen" means human biologic
material collected in a manner specified in the department's rules or internal
regulations [adopted pursuant to section 844D‑3], including but
not limited to blood."
SECTION 3. The police department of each county, the department of public safety, and the division of conservation and resources enforcement shall report their findings and recommendations regarding the sexual assault kit tracking program, including any proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2017. The report shall include the respective number of unprocessed sexual assault kits collected statewide prior to July 1, 2016, and the most up to date information on the reduction of any backlog. The police department of each county, the department of public safety, and the division of conservation and resources enforcement shall make the report available to the public on their respective websites.
SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $ or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2016-2017 for the department of the attorney general to ensure that all sexual assault kits that are the subject of a criminal investigation and collected prior to July 1, 2016, are analyzed.
The sum appropriated shall be expended by the department of the attorney general for the purposes of this Act.
SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 3000.
Report Title:
Evidence; Sexual Assault Kit Tracking Program
Description:
Establishes the Sexual Assault Kit Tracking Program in the Honolulu Police Department, including requirements for submission of kits for testing, reporting information to state and federal DNA databases, obtaining consent prior to testing, and admissibility of evidence in judicial proceedings. Requires reporting on program implementation and kit testing backlog. Makes appropriation to Department of the Attorney General. (HB1907 HD2)
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