Bill Text: MI SB1211 | 2011-2012 | 96th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Crime victims; rights; victim notification of paroled prisoner escape, commutation, death, or parole board hearing; require, and allow victim to address parole board under certain circumstances. Amends secs. 19, 20, 21 & 48 of 1985 PA 87 (MCL 780.769 et seq.).
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2012-12-31 - Assigned Pa 0564'12 2012 Addenda [SB1211 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2011-SB1211-Introduced.html
SENATE BILL No. 1211
July 18, 2012, Introduced by Senators GREEN, JONES and ROCCA and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to amend 1985 PA 87, entitled
"William Van Regenmorter crime victim's rights act,"
by amending sections 19, 20, and 21 (MCL 780.769, 780.770, and
780.771), as amended by 2005 PA 184.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 19. (1) Upon the victim's written request, the sheriff or
the department of corrections shall mail to the victim the
following, as applicable, about a prisoner who has been sentenced
to imprisonment under the jurisdiction of the sheriff or the
department for the crime against that victim:
(a) Within 30 days after the request, notice of the sheriff's
calculation of the prisoner's earliest release date or the
department's calculation of the prisoner's earliest parole
eligibility date, with all potential good time or disciplinary
credits considered, if the sentence of imprisonment exceeds 90
days.
(b) Notice of the prisoner's transfer or pending transfer to a
minimum security facility and the facility's address.
(c) Notice of the prisoner's release or pending release in a
community residential program or under furlough; any other transfer
to community status; any transfer from 1 community residential
program or electronic monitoring program to another; or any
transfer from a community residential program or electronic
monitoring program to a state correctional facility.
(d)
Notice of the escape of that
the person accused,
convicted, or imprisoned for committing a crime against the victim
has absconded while on bail or other release or has escaped from
custody, as provided in section 20.
(e) Notice of the victim's right to address or submit a
written statement for consideration by a parole board member or a
member of any other panel having authority over the prisoner's
release on parole, and to testify and present exhibits at any
parole or commutation hearing, as provided in section 21.
(f) Notice of the decision of the parole board, or any other
panel having authority over the prisoner's release on parole, after
a parole review, as provided in section 21.
(g) Notice of the release of a prisoner 90 days before the
date of the prisoner's discharge from prison, unless the notice has
been otherwise provided under this article.
(h) Notice that the prisoner has applied for a reprieve,
commutation, or pardon.
(i) (h)
Notice of a public hearing under
section 44 of the
corrections code of 1953, 1953 PA 232, MCL 791.244, regarding a
reprieve, commutation, or pardon of the prisoner's sentence by the
governor.
(j) (i)
Notice that a reprieve,
commutation, or pardon has
been granted or denied.
(k) (j)
Notice that a prisoner has had his
or her name legally
changed while on parole or within 2 years after release from
parole.
(l) (k)
Notice that a prisoner has been
convicted of a new
crime.
(m) (l) Notice
that a prisoner has been returned from parole
status to a correctional facility due to an alleged violation of
the conditions of his or her parole.
(n) Notice that the prisoner, including a parolee, has died.
(2) A victim's address and telephone number maintained by a
sheriff or the department of corrections upon a request for notice
under this section are exempt from disclosure under the freedom of
information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to 15.246.
Sec. 20. (1) The person designated in subsections (2) to (4)
shall give a victim who requests notice and the prosecuting
attorney who is prosecuting or has prosecuted the crime for which a
defendant is detained, under sentence, hospitalized, or admitted to
a facility immediate notice of the escape of the defendant accused,
convicted, imprisoned, hospitalized, or admitted to a facility for
committing a crime against the victim. The notice shall be given by
any means reasonably calculated to give prompt actual notice.
(2)
If an escape for which a notice is
required under this
section
is required occurs and the
prisoner absconds while on bail
or other release or escapes from custody before sentence is
executed or before the defendant is delivered to the department of
corrections, hospitalized, or admitted to a facility, the chief law
enforcement officer of the agency in charge of the person's
detention
shall give notice of the escape to the prosecuting
attorney that the prisoner has absconded or escaped, who shall then
give
notice of the escape to the victim who requested that notice.
The notice shall be provided to the victim within 24 hours after
the prisoner is reported to have absconded or escaped.
(3) If the defendant is confined under a sentence, the notice
required under this section shall be given by the chief
administrator of the place in which the prisoner is confined.
(4) If the defendant is hospitalized under an order of
hospitalization or admitted to a facility under an order of
admission, the notice required under this section shall be given by
the director of the hospital in which the defendant is hospitalized
or by the director of the facility to which the defendant is
admitted.
Sec. 21. (1) A victim has the right to address or submit a
written statement for consideration by a parole board member or a
member of any other panel having authority over the prisoner's
release on parole and to testify and present exhibits at any parole
or commutation hearing.
(2) Not less than 30 days before a review of the prisoner's
release, a victim who has requested notice under section 19(1)(f)
shall be given written notice by the department of corrections
informing the victim of the pending review and of victims' rights
under this section. The victim, at his or her own expense, may be
represented by counsel at the review.
(3) A victim shall receive notice of the decision of the board
or panel and, if applicable, notice of the date of the prisoner's
release on parole. Notice shall be mailed within a reasonable time
after the board or panel reaches its decision but not later than 14
days after the board or panel has reached its decision. The notice
shall include a statement of the victim's right to appeal a parole
decision, as allowed under section 34 of the corrections code of
1953, 1953 PA 232, MCL 791.234.
(4) A record of an oral statement or a written statement made
under subsection (1) is exempt from disclosure under the freedom of
information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to 15.246.
