Bill Text: IL HB2329 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963. Provides that the law enforcement agency shall present the documentation demonstrating the chain of custody that accompanies the forensic evidence at trial, as well as authenticated copies of the original testing, including, but not limited to, laboratory notebooks, the resumes and qualifications of each individual performing and analyzing the testing and results, as well as supporting documentation from the test methodology itself. Provides that the provision does not apply if a representative of the defendant witnesses the testing as it is being performed or if stipulated to by counsel. Amends the Code of Civil Procedure. Provides that any party seeking to introduce forensic or scientific testing evidence shall present the documentation demonstrating the chain of custody that accompanies the forensic or scientific evidence at trial, as well as authenticated copies of the original testing, including, but not limited to, laboratory notebooks, the resumes and qualifications of each individual performing and analyzing the testing and results, as well as supporting documentation from the test methodology itself. Provides that the receiving party of the evidence in the discovery phase may also request the raw electronic files underlying analytical testing performed on any article or sample.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-29 - Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HB2329 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB2329-Introduced.html

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101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2019 and 2020 HB2329 Introduced , by Rep. Deanne M. Mazzochi SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
725 ILCS 5/116-4
735 ILCS 5/Art. VIII Pt. 29 heading new
735 ILCS 5/8-2901 new
Amends the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963. Provides that the law enforcement agency shall present the documentation demonstrating the chain of custody that accompanies the forensic evidence at trial, as well as authenticated copies of the original testing, including, but not limited to, laboratory notebooks, the resumes and qualifications of each individual performing and analyzing the testing and results, as well as supporting documentation from the test methodology itself. Provides that the provision does not apply if a representative of the defendant witnesses the testing as it is being performed or if stipulated to by counsel. Amends the Code of Civil Procedure. Provides that any party seeking to introduce forensic or scientific testing evidence shall present the documentation demonstrating the chain of custody that accompanies the forensic or scientific evidence at trial, as well as authenticated copies of the original testing, including, but not limited to, laboratory notebooks, the resumes and qualifications of each individual performing and analyzing the testing and results, as well as supporting documentation from the test methodology itself. Provides that the receiving party of the evidence in the discovery phase may also request the raw electronic files underlying analytical testing performed on any article or sample.
LRB101 10874 SLF 56017 b
A BILL FOR
HB2329 LRB101 10874 SLF 56017 b
AN ACT concerning forensic evidence.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 is
amended by changing Section 116-4 as follows:
(725 ILCS 5/116-4)
Sec. 116-4. Preservation of evidence for forensic testing.
(a) Before or after the trial in a prosecution for a
violation of Section 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40, 11-1.50,
11-1.60, 12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15, or 12-16 of the Criminal
Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or in a prosecution
for an offense defined in Article 9 of that Code, or in a
prosecution for an attempt in violation of Section 8-4 of that
Code of any of the above-enumerated offenses, unless otherwise
provided herein under subsection (b) or (c), a law enforcement
agency or an agent acting on behalf of the law enforcement
agency shall preserve, subject to a continuous chain of
custody, any physical evidence in their possession or control
that is reasonably likely to contain forensic evidence,
including, but not limited to, fingerprints or biological
material secured in relation to a trial and with sufficient
documentation to locate that evidence. The law enforcement
agency shall present the documentation demonstrating the chain

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of custody that accompanies the forensic evidence at trial, as
well as authenticated copies of the original testing,
including, but not limited to, laboratory notebooks, the
resumes and qualifications of each individual performing and
analyzing the testing and results, as well as supporting
documentation from the test methodology itself. This
requirement shall not apply if a representative of the
defendant witnesses the testing as it is being performed or if
stipulated to by counsel.
(b) After a judgment of conviction is entered, the evidence
shall either be impounded with the Clerk of the Circuit Court
or shall be securely retained by a law enforcement agency.
Retention shall be permanent in cases where a sentence of death
is imposed. Retention shall be until the completion of the
sentence, including the period of mandatory supervised release
for the offense, or January 1, 2006, whichever is later, for
any conviction for an offense or an attempt of an offense
defined in Article 9 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the
Criminal Code of 2012 or in Section 11-1.20, 11-1.30, 11-1.40,
11-1.50, 11-1.60, 12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15, or 12-16 of the
Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code of 2012 or for 7
years following any conviction for any other felony for which
the defendant's genetic profile may be taken by a law
enforcement agency and submitted for comparison in a forensic
DNA database for unsolved offenses.
(c) After a judgment of conviction is entered, the law

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enforcement agency required to retain evidence described in
subsection (a) may petition the court with notice to the
defendant or, in cases where the defendant has died, his
estate, his attorney of record, or an attorney appointed for
that purpose by the court for entry of an order allowing it to
dispose of evidence if, after a hearing, the court determines
by a preponderance of the evidence that:
(1) it has no significant value for forensic science
analysis and should be returned to its rightful owner,
destroyed, used for training purposes, or as otherwise
provided by law; or
(2) it has no significant value for forensic science
analysis and is of a size, bulk, or physical character not
usually retained by the law enforcement agency and cannot
practicably be retained by the law enforcement agency; or
(3) there no longer exists a reasonable basis to
require the preservation of the evidence because of the
death of the defendant; however, this paragraph (3) does
not apply if a sentence of death was imposed.
(d) The court may order the disposition of the evidence if
the defendant is allowed the opportunity to take reasonable
measures to remove or preserve portions of the evidence in
question for future testing.
(d-5) Any order allowing the disposition of evidence
pursuant to subsection (c) or (d) shall be a final and
appealable order. No evidence shall be disposed of until 30

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days after the order is entered, and if a notice of appeal is
filed, no evidence shall be disposed of until the mandate has
been received by the circuit court from the appellate court.
(d-10) All records documenting the possession, control,
storage, and destruction of evidence and all police reports,
evidence control or inventory records, and other reports cited
in this Section, including computer records, must be retained
for as long as the evidence exists and may not be disposed of
without the approval of the Local Records Commission.
(e) In this Section, "law enforcement agency" includes any
of the following or an agent acting on behalf of any of the
following: a municipal police department, county sheriff's
office, any prosecuting authority, the Department of State
Police, or any other State, university, county, federal, or
municipal police unit or police force.
"Biological material" includes, but is not limited to, any
blood, hair, saliva, or semen from which genetic marker
groupings may be obtained.
(Source: P.A. 96-1551, eff. 7-1-11; 97-1150, eff. 1-25-13.)
Section 10. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by
adding Article VIII Pt. 29 as follows:
(735 ILCS 5/Art. VIII Pt. 29 heading new)
ARTICLE VIII Pt. 29. Forensic or Scientific Evidence

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(735 ILCS 5/8-2901 new)
Sec. 8-2901. Forensic or scientific evidence;
requirements. Any party seeking to introduce forensic or
scientific testing evidence shall present the documentation
demonstrating the chain of custody that accompanies the
forensic or scientific evidence at trial, as well as
authenticated copies of the original testing, including, but
not limited to, laboratory notebooks, the resumes and
qualifications of each individual performing and analyzing the
testing and results, as well as supporting documentation from
the test methodology itself. The receiving party of the
evidence in the discovery phase may also request the raw
electronic files underlying analytical testing performed on
any article or sample. This Section does not apply if
stipulated to by counsel.