HB 316: "An Act relating to post-conviction DNA testing, to the preservation of certain evidence, and to the DNA identification registration system; relating to post-conviction relief procedures; relating to representation by the public defender; amending Rule 35.1, Alaska Rules of Criminal Procedure; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 316 01 "An Act relating to post-conviction DNA testing, to the preservation of certain evidence, 02 and to the DNA identification registration system; relating to post-conviction relief 03 procedures; relating to representation by the public defender; amending Rule 35.1, 04 Alaska Rules of Criminal Procedure; and providing for an effective date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 12.36.020(a) is amended to read: 07 (a) A law enforcement agency may 08 (1) not return property in its custody to the owner or the agent of the 09 owner, except as provided in AS 12.36.200, if 10 (A) the property is in custody in connection with a children's 11 court proceeding, a criminal proceeding, or an official investigation of a crime; 12 or 13 (B) the property in custody is subject to forfeiture under the 14 laws of the
01 (i) state; or 02 (ii) United States, and the United States has commenced 03 forfeiture proceedings against the property or has requested the transfer 04 of the property for the commencement of forfeiture proceedings; and 05 (2) with the approval of the court, transfer the property to another state 06 or federal law enforcement agency for forfeiture proceedings by that agency; the court 07 having jurisdiction shall grant the approval under this paragraph if the property 08 (A) will be retained within the jurisdiction of the court by the 09 agency to which the property is being transferred; or 10 (B) is 11 (i) not needed as evidence; or 12 (ii) needed as evidence, and the property is fungible or 13 the property's evidentiary value can otherwise be preserved without 14 retaining the property within the jurisdiction of the court. 15 * Sec. 2. AS 12.36.090 is amended to read: 16 Sec. 12.36.090. Definitions. In AS 12.36.010 - 12.36.090 [THIS CHAPTER], 17 (1) "final disposition of a case" means the time when all appeals have 18 been exhausted or the time when all appeals that could have been taken has expired; 19 (2) "law enforcement agency" means a public agency that performs as 20 one of its principal functions an activity relating to crime prevention, control, or 21 reduction or relating to the enforcement of the criminal law; "law enforcement 22 agency" does not include a court. 23 * Sec. 3. AS 12.36 is amended by adding a new section to read: 24 Article 2. Preservation of Evidence. 25 Sec. 12.36.200. Preservation of evidence. (a) Except as otherwise provided in 26 this section and notwithstanding AS 12.36.010 - 12.36.090, an agency shall preserve 27 (1) evidence that is obtained in relation to an investigation and relevant 28 to the prosecution of a crime under AS 11.41.100 - 11.41.130, 11.41.410, or 11.41.434 29 for the following periods: 30 (A) 18 months after the entry of a judgment of conviction of 31 the crime;
01 (B) if the conviction for the crime is appealed, one year after 02 the judgment becomes final by the conclusion of direct review; or 03 (C) if a timely application for post-conviction relief is filed 04 within the periods stated in (A) and (B) of this paragraph, the date that a 05 judgment dismissing or denying the application for post-conviction review 06 becomes final; 07 (2) biological material contained in or found on evidence that is 08 obtained in an investigation and relevant to the prosecution of a person convicted of a 09 felony under AS 11.41, until the person is unconditionally discharged for the crime, or 10 until the periods of time provided in (1) of this subsection have expired, whichever is 11 longer; biological material must be preserved in an amount and manner that is 12 sufficient to develop a DNA profile under technology available at the time that the 13 biological material is preserved. 14 (b) An agency is not required under (a) of this section to preserve physical 15 evidence of a crime that is of a size, bulk, quantity, or physical character that makes 16 preservation impractical or hazardous. If preservation of evidence is impractical or 17 hazardous, the agency shall, before returning or disposing of the evidence, remove and 18 preserve portions of the evidence likely to contain relevant evidence related to the 19 crime in an amount and manner sufficient to retain its evidentiary value and, if 20 appropriate, to permit DNA testing under technology available at the time that the 21 biological material is preserved. An agency shall develop written policies concerning 22 the removal and preservation of samples of evidence for retention under this section. 23 The development of written policies as described in this subsection is not subject to 24 the adoption of regulation provisions of AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act). 25 (c) Upon the written request of a person convicted of a crime described in (a) 26 of this section, an agency shall provide an inventory of the evidence that has been 27 preserved under (a)(1) of this section and of the biological material that has been 28 preserved under (a)(2) of this section in connection with the person's conviction. 29 (d) The person who requests evidence that has been preserved under this 30 section shall pay reasonable costs incurred in the retrieval of the evidence from 31 storage.
01 (e) An agency required to preserve evidence or biological material under (a) of 02 this section may return or otherwise dispose of evidence or biological material before 03 the expiration of the time period described in (a) of this section if the agency 04 (1) is not required to preserve the evidence or biological material by 05 court order or under any other provision of federal, state, or municipal law; 06 (2) sends with proof of delivery by United States Postal Service, or a 07 private commercial delivery service, notice of intent to return or otherwise dispose of 08 the evidence or biological material to 09 (A) each person who is convicted of a crime for which the 10 evidence or biological material was preserved under (a) of this section; 11 (B) if known, the attorney of record in the criminal prosecution 12 and the current attorney for each person described in (A) of this paragraph; and 13 (C) the prosecuting authority responsible for prosecuting the 14 crime; and 15 (3) has not received, after 120 days of delivering notice under (2) of 16 this subsection, a written request for continued preservation of the evidence or 17 biological material or an application for post-conviction DNA testing under 18 AS 12.73.010 from a person notified under (2) of this subsection. 19 (f) An agency may petition the court for permission to return or otherwise 20 dispose of the evidence or the biological material if the agency receives a request for 21 continued preservation of evidence or biological material under (e) of this section. The 22 court may grant the petition if the court finds, by a preponderance of evidence, that 23 evidence or biological material preserved under (a) of this section 24 (1) is fungible and the evidentiary value of the property can be 25 preserved without retaining the property; or 26 (2) has no significant evidentiary value. 27 (g) If an agency is requested to produce evidence or biological material, and is 28 unable to locate evidence or biological material required to be preserved under this 29 section, the chief evidence custodian of the agency shall prepare an affidavit 30 describing the evidence or biological material that could not be located and the efforts 31 taken to locate it. The agency shall file the affidavit with the court that entered the
01 judgment in the criminal case to which the biological material or evidence relates. A 02 copy of the affidavit must be sent to the persons identified in (e)(2) of this section. 03 (h) If a court finds that evidence or biological material was disposed of in 04 violation of the provisions of this section, the court may order the remedy the court 05 determines to be appropriate. However, the court may not reverse or vacate a 06 conviction based solely on a violation of the provisions of this section. 07 (i) A person may not bring a civil action for damages against the state or 08 political subdivision of the state and its officers, agents, or employees, or a law 09 enforcement agency and its officers, agents, or employees for a good faith failure to 10 comply with the provisions of this section. 11 (j) For purposes of (a) of this section, that agency shall consider that 12 (1) direct review as provided in (a)(1)(B) of this section concludes on 13 the latest of the following dates: 14 (A) 16 days after entry of the judgment on appeal; 15 (B) if a defendant files a petition for hearing seeking review of 16 the judgment affirming the conviction, 90 days after the denial of the petition 17 or a decision affirming the judgment of conviction; 18 (C) if a defendant seeks review by the United States Supreme 19 Court of the judgment of conviction, 25 days after denial of the petition for 20 writ of certiorari or a decision affirming the judgment of conviction; 21 (2) a conviction occurs on the date a person is sentenced. 22 (k) In this section, unless the context otherwise requires, 23 (1) "agency" means the Department of Law, the Department of Public 24 Safety, the Alaska Court System, or a municipal law enforcement agency; 25 (2) "biological material" means 26 (A) the contents of a sexual assault forensic examination kit; 27 (B) semen, blood, hair, saliva, skin tissue, fingernail scrapings, 28 bone, bodily fluids, or other identifiable human bodily material, collected as 29 part of a criminal investigation; 30 (C) a slide, swab, or test tube containing material described in 31 (B) of this paragraph; and
01 (D) swabs or cuttings from items that contain material 02 described in (B) of this paragraph; 03 (3) "DNA" means deoxyribonucleic acid; 04 (4) "unconditionally discharged" means that a defendant is released 05 from all disability arising under a sentence, including probation and parole. 06 * Sec. 4. AS 12.72.010 is amended to read: 07 Sec. 12.72.010. Scope of post-conviction relief. A person who has been convicted 08 of, or sentenced for, a crime may institute a proceeding for post-conviction relief if the person 09 claims 10 (1) that the conviction or the sentence was in violation of the Constitution of 11 the United States or the constitution or laws of this state; 12 (2) that the court was without jurisdiction to impose sentence; 13 (3) that a prior conviction has been set aside and the prior conviction was 14 used as a statutorily required enhancement of the sentence imposed; 15 (4) that there exists evidence of material facts, not previously presented and 16 heard by the court, that requires vacation of the conviction or sentence in the interest of 17 justice; if the person seeks post-conviction DNA testing to support a claim under this 18 paragraph, the person's exclusive method for obtaining that testing is an application 19 under AS 12.73; 20 (5) that the person's sentence has expired, or the person's probation, parole, or 21 conditional release has been unlawfully revoked, or the person is otherwise unlawfully held in 22 custody or other restraint; 23 (6) that the conviction or sentence is otherwise subject to collateral attack 24 upon any ground or alleged error previously available under the common law, statutory law,or 25 other writ, motion, petition, proceeding, or remedy; 26 (7) that 27 (A) there has been a significant change in law, whether substantive or 28 procedural, applied in the process leading to the person's conviction or sentence; 29 (B) the change in the law was not reasonably foreseeable by a judge or 30 a competent attorney; 31 (C) it is appropriate to retroactively apply the change in law because
01 the change requires observance of procedures without which the likelihood of an accurate 02 conviction is seriously diminished; and 03 (D) the failure to retroactively apply the change in law would result in 04 a fundamental miscarriage of justice, which is established by demonstrating that, had the 05 changed law been in effect at the time of the applicant's trial, a reasonable trier of fact would 06 have a reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the applicant; 07 (8) that after the imposition of sentence, the applicant seeks to withdraw a 08 plea of guilty or nolo contendere in order to correct manifest injustice under the Alaska Rules 09 of Criminal Procedure; or 10 (9) that the applicant was not afforded effective assistance of counsel at trial 11 or on direct appeal. 12 * Sec. 5. AS 12.72.030 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 13 (b) A person who files an application for post-conviction relief under 14 AS 12.72 or the Alaska Rules of Criminal Procedure may not pursue discovery related 15 to the application unless the applicant first pleads a prima facie case for relief and the 16 court finds that a prima facie case for relief has been established under AS 12.72 or the 17 Alaska Rules of Criminal Procedure. 18 * Sec. 6. AS 12 is amended by adding a new chapter to read: 19 Chapter 73. Post-Conviction DNA Testing Procedures. 20 Sec. 12.73.010. Application for post-conviction DNA testing. (a) A person 21 convicted of a felony against a person under AS 11.41 who has not been 22 unconditionally discharged may apply to the superior court for an order for DNA 23 testing of evidence. The application must be filed in the court that entered the 24 judgment of conviction, and a copy shall be served on the prosecuting authority 25 responsible for obtaining the conviction. 26 (b) An application filed under (a) of this section must specifically identify the 27 evidence sought to be tested, and must include facts from which the court can make 28 the findings required under AS 12.73.020. The application must also include the 29 following: 30 (1) an affidavit by the applicant that attests to the following: 31 (A) the applicant did not commit the offense for which the
01 applicant was convicted or any lesser included offense; 02 (B) the applicant did not solicit another person to commit, or 03 aid or abet another person in planning or committing, that offense or any lesser 04 included offense; and 05 (C) the applicant did not admit or concede guilt in any official 06 proceeding for the offense that was the basis of the conviction or any lesser 07 included offense; 08 (2) an affidavit by the applicant or the applicant's lawyer stating the 09 results of each DNA test performed on the evidence in the prosecution that resulted in 10 the applicant's conviction; 11 (3) an affidavit by the applicant or the applicant's lawyer describing all 12 previous efforts to obtain DNA testing and any previous application filed under this 13 section or under AS 12.72; 14 (4) an affidavit by the applicant's lawyer in the criminal trial stating the 15 reason that DNA testing was not sought before or during trial, or an affidavit by the 16 applicant or the applicant's lawyer describing the efforts made to obtain the affidavit 17 from the criminal trial lawyer and the reason the applicant was unable to obtain it. 18 (c) A lawyer who represents an applicant under this section shall investigate 19 and, if possible, confirm the accuracy of information provided by the applicant under 20 (b) (2) - (4) of this section. 21 (d) If an applicant is indigent, filing fees must be paid under the provisions of 22 AS 09.19 and counsel shall be appointed under the provisions of AS 18.85.100 to 23 represent the applicant. 24 Sec. 12.73.020. Findings required for post-conviction DNA testing orders. 25 The court shall order post-conviction DNA testing of specific evidence if 26 (1) the applicant was convicted of a felony under AS 11.41; 27 (2) the applicant and, if represented, the applicant's lawyer, have 28 submitted the affidavits required by AS 12.73.010(b); 29 (3) the applicant has not in an official proceeding admitted or 30 conceded guilt for the crime that was the basis for the conviction; 31 (4) the evidence sought to be tested was obtained as part of the
01 investigation or the prosecution described in (1) of this section; 02 (5) the evidence either 03 (A) was not subjected to DNA testing, and the applicant did not 04 waive, or the applicant's lawyer did not forgo for tactical reasons, the right to 05 request DNA testing; or 06 (B) was previously subjected to DNA testing, and 07 (i) the applicant is requesting DNA testing using a 08 method or technology that is substantially more probative than the 09 previous DNA testing; and 10 (ii) the applicant did not waive the right to request, or 11 the applicant's lawyer did not forgo for tactical reasons, DNA testing 12 using a method whose probative value was similar to the method to be 13 used in the requested testing; 14 (6) the evidence to be tested has been subject to a chain of custody and 15 retained under conditions that ensure that the evidence has not been substituted, 16 contaminated, or altered in any manner material to the proposed DNA testing; 17 (7) the proposed DNA testing is reasonable in scope, uses scientifically 18 sound methods, and is consistent with accepted forensic practices; 19 (8) the applicant identifies a theory of defense that 20 (A) is not inconsistent with a defense presented at trial; and 21 (B) would establish the applicant's innocence; 22 (9) if the applicant was convicted after a trial, the identity of the 23 perpetrator was a disputed issue in the trial; 24 (10) there is a reasonable probability, in light of all available evidence, 25 regardless of whether the evidence was introduced at the applicant's trial, that the 26 requested DNA testing will produce new material evidence that 27 (A) would support the theory of defense described in (8) of this 28 section; and 29 (B) could conclusively establish that the applicant is innocent; 30 (11) the applicant consents to provide a DNA sample for purposes of 31 comparison and to entry of the results into the DNA identification registration system
01 under AS 44.41.035 and into any other law enforcement database; and 02 (12) the application is timely as described in AS 12.73.040. 03 Sec. 12.73.030. Summary dismissal and response. (a) If an application under 04 AS 12.73.010(a) does not set out the specific facts necessary for the court to make the 05 findings required under AS 12.73.020 or does not comply with AS 12.73.010(b), the 06 court shall deny the application without further proceedings. 07 (b) If an application filed under AS 12.73.010(a) is not denied under (a) of this 08 section, the prosecuting authority shall file a response within 45 days of service of the 09 application. The court shall conduct an evidentiary hearing to resolve any disputed 10 facts. 11 Sec. 12.73.040. Timeliness. In determining whether an application is timely 12 under AS 12.73.020(12), 13 (1) there is a presumption of timeliness if the application is filed before 14 three years after the date of conviction; this presumption may be rebutted if the court 15 finds that the application is based solely upon information used in a previously denied 16 application; and 17 (2) there is a presumption of untimeliness if the application is filed 18 three years or more after conviction; this presumption may be rebutted if the court 19 finds 20 (A) that the applicant was incompetent and the incompetence 21 substantially contributed to the delay in filing the application; or 22 (B) other good cause for filing three years or more after 23 conviction. 24 Sec. 12.73.050. Testing procedures. (a) If the court grants the application and 25 DNA samples for comparison purposes are required, samples taken from the applicant 26 or a prisoner must be collected at a law enforcement or correctional facility. If the 27 DNA sample is being collected from a person other than the applicant or a prisoner, 28 the sample must be taken by a law enforcement officer or other authorized person at a 29 location that is convenient for the person from whom the sample is being collected and 30 the person collecting the sample. 31 (b) The court may not order that a person other than the applicant provide a
01 DNA sample for comparison purposes unless that person is first afforded notice and an 02 opportunity to be heard by the court. The results of DNA testing of a sample provided 03 by a person other than the applicant may not be made available to the DNA 04 identification registration system under AS 44.41.035 or to any other law enforcement 05 database unless specifically ordered by the court. 06 (c) DNA testing ordered under this section shall be performed at the state's 07 expense and at a laboratory operated or approved by the Department of Public Safety. 08 If, after completion of the testing ordered under this section, an applicant requests 09 additional testing, any additional testing ordered by the court at the applicant's request 10 must be at the applicant's expense. If the court orders additional testing by another 11 laboratory at the request of the applicant, the laboratory operated or approved by the 12 Department of Public Safety shall preserve a portion of the evidence for later testing. 13 A laboratory selected by the applicant to perform testing under this section must 14 comply with the quality assurance standards for DNA adopted by the United States 15 Department of Justice and be accredited by the American Society of Crime Laboratory 16 Directors Laboratory Accreditation Board or the accepted as equivalent by the 17 Department of Public Safety. The applicant shall pay the reasonable costs incurred in 18 the retrieval from storage of the material to be tested. 19 (d) Except as provided in (b) of this section, the results of testing ordered 20 under this section shall be entered into the DNA identification registration system 21 under AS 44.41.035 and into any other law enforcement database available to the 22 Department of Public Safety. 23 Sec. 12.73.060. Post-conviction testing by stipulation. The provisions of 24 AS 12.73.010 - 12.73.900 do not prohibit an applicant and the prosecuting authority 25 from agreeing to conduct post-conviction DNA testing without the person filing an 26 application under this chapter. The parties may also stipulate to the payment of costs 27 for the DNA testing and other costs associated with the terms of the agreement. 28 Sec. 12.73.900. Definitions. In this chapter, unless the context requires 29 otherwise, 30 (1) "DNA" means deoxyribonucleic acid; 31 (2) "innocence" or "innocent" means that the applicant was not a
01 perpetrator of or an accomplice to the offense or any lesser included offenses for 02 which the applicant was convicted; 03 (3) "prisoner" has the meaning given in AS 33.30.901; 04 (4) "unconditionally discharged" means that a defendant is released 05 from all disability arising under a sentence, including probation and parole. 06 * Sec. 7. AS 18.85.100 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 07 (g) An indigent person is entitled to representation under (a) and (b) of this 08 section for purposes of bringing an application for post-conviction DNA testing under 09 AS 12.73. 10 * Sec. 8. AS 44.41.035(b) is amended to read: 11 (b) The Department of Public Safety shall collect for inclusion into the DNA 12 identification registration system a blood sample, oral sample, or both, from (1) a 13 person convicted in this state of a crime against a person or a felony under AS 11 or 14 AS 28.35 or a law or ordinance with elements similar to a crime against a person or a 15 felony under AS 11 or AS 28.35, (2) a minor [16 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER,] 16 adjudicated as a delinquent in this state for an act committed when the minor was 16 17 years of age or older, that would be a crime against a person or a felony under AS 11 18 or AS 28.35 if committed by an adult or for an act that would violate a law or 19 ordinance with elements similar to a crime against a person or a felony under AS 11 or 20 AS 28.35 if committed by an adult, (3) a voluntary donor, (4) an anonymous DNA 21 donor for use in forensic validation, forensic protocol development, quality control, or 22 population or statistical data bases, (5) a person required to register as a sex offender 23 or child kidnapper under AS 12.63, and (6) a person arrested for a crime against a 24 person or a felony under AS 11 or AS 28.35, or a law or ordinance with elements 25 similar to a crime against a person or a felony under AS 11 or AS 28.35. The 26 department also may collect for inclusion into the DNA identification registration 27 system a blood sample, oral sample, or tissue sample from crime scene evidence or 28 from unidentified human remains. The DNA identification registration system consists 29 of the blood, oral, or tissue samples drawn under this section, any DNA or other blood 30 grouping tests done on those samples, and the identification data related to the samples 31 or tests. Blood samples, oral samples, and tissue samples not subject to testing under
01 this section, and test or identification data related to those samples, may not be entered 02 into, or made a part of, the DNA identification registration system. 03 * Sec. 9. AS 44.41.035(g) is amended to read: 04 (g) A person or minor from whom a sample has been collected under this 05 section 06 (1) may inspect and obtain a copy of the identification data regarding 07 the person or minor contained within the DNA identification registration system; and 08 (2) may request the Department of Public Safety to destroy the 09 material in the system regarding the person under the provisions described in (i) 10 of this section. 11 * Sec. 10. AS 44.41.035(i) is amended to read: 12 (i) The Department of Public Safety shall [, UPON RECEIPT OF A COURT 13 ORDER,] destroy the material in the system relating to a person or minor on the 14 written request of the person or minor, if the request is accompanied by a 15 certified copy of a court order making the written findings required by this 16 subsection. The court shall issue an [THE] order under this subsection if the 17 person's or minor's DNA was included in the system under 18 (1) (b)(1) or (2) of this section, and the court order establishes 19 [DETERMINES] that 20 (A) the conviction or adjudication that subjected the person to 21 having a sample taken under this section was [IS] reversed; and 22 (B) the person 23 (i) was [IS] not retried, readjudicated, or convicted or 24 adjudicated for another crime that requires having a sample taken under 25 this section; or 26 (ii) after retrial, was [IS] acquitted of the crime or, after 27 readjudication for the crime, was [IS] not found to be a delinquent, and 28 was [IS] not convicted or adjudicated for another crime that requires a 29 sample under this section; 30 (2) (b)(6) of this section, and the court order establishes 31 [DETERMINES] that
01 (A) the person arrested was released without being charged; 02 [OR] 03 (B) the criminal complaint, indictment, presentment, or 04 information for the offense for which the person was arrested was dismissed, 05 and a criminal complaint, indictment, presentment, or information for an 06 offense requiring submission of a DNA sample was [IS] not refiled; or 07 (C) the person was found by the trier of fact to be not guilty 08 of the offense for which the person was arrested and was not convicted of 09 another offense requiring submission of a DNA sample under (b)(1) or (2) 10 of this section. 11 * Sec. 11. AS 44.41.035(k) is amended to read: 12 (k) The provisions of this section apply to a person or a minor from another 13 state that this state has accepted under any interstate corrections or probation 14 agreement or compact, regardless of whether the person or minor is confined or 15 released, if the person was convicted or the minor was adjudicated for [OF] an 16 offense that is similar to an offense described in (b) of this section. 17 * Sec. 12. AS 44.41.035(o) is amended to read: 18 (o) A person or minor may not bring a civil action against the state or a 19 municipality, or their employees or agents, for actions arising out of DNA collection 20 in conformity with this section. 21 * Sec. 13. AS 44.41.035 is amended by adding subsections to read: 22 (r) A DNA sample collected or placed in the DNA identification registration 23 system that was taken or retained in good faith may be used as provided by law in a 24 criminal investigation. Evidence obtained from a match from a data collection system 25 may be used in a criminal prosecution or juvenile adjudication if the DNA sample was 26 taken or retained in good faith, even if the DNA sample is later removed from the 27 DNA identification registration system. 28 (s) If a sample collected under (b) of this section does not contain sufficient 29 material necessary to obtain an accurate DNA identification authorized under this 30 section, the Department of Public Safety or other agency authorized by the 31 Department of Public Safety may collect another sample.
01 * Sec. 14. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 02 read: 03 INDIRECT COURT RULE CHANGE. AS 12.73.010 - 12.73.900, added by sec. 6 of 04 this Act, have the effect of amending Rule 35.1, Alaska Rules of Criminal Procedure, relating 05 to post-conviction relief procedure. 06 * Sec. 15. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 07 read: 08 CONDITIONAL EFFECT. AS 12.73.010 - 12.73.900, added by sec. 6 of this Act, 09 take effect only if sec. 14 of this Act receives the two-thirds majority vote of each house 10 required by art. IV, sec. 15, Constitution of the State of Alaska. 11 * Sec. 16. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 12 read: 13 TASK FORCE ON STANDARDS FOR PRESERVATION OF EVIDENCE. (a) The 14 Task Force on Standards for Preservation of Evidence is created in the Department of Law. 15 The task force consists of the following: 16 (1) the attorney general, who serves as the chair of the task force; 17 (2) the commissioner of public safety; 18 (3) a chief of a municipal police department not on the state's interconnected 19 road system; 20 (4) a chief of a municipal police department; 21 (5) the state medical examiner appointed under AS 12.65.015; 22 (6) a representative of the state crime laboratory; 23 (7) a representative from the court system; 24 (8) the victims' advocate appointed under AS 24.65.020. 25 (b) Task force members listed in (a)(3), (4), and (6) of this section are appointed by 26 the governor. Except for task force members appointed under (a)(7) and (a)(8) of this section, 27 task force members serve at the pleasure of the governor. The task force member listed in 28 (a)(7) of this section is appointed by the chief justice of the supreme court and serves at the 29 pleasure of the chief justice. 30 (c) A task force member may select a designee from the same agency or organization 31 to act on the person's behalf as a member of the task force.
01 (d) No later than December 31, 2012, the task force shall 02 (1) recommend standards and protocols regarding the identification, 03 collection, storage, organization, cataloging, and retrieval of evidence and biological 04 materials; 05 (2) identify possible sources of financing for the costs of implementing the 06 standards and protocols recommended under (1) of this subsection; 07 (3) recommend minimum qualifications and training programs for law 08 enforcement officers and other employees who are responsible for the identification, storage, 09 organization, and cataloging of evidence and biological materials; and 10 (4) report its findings and recommendations to the governor and the 11 legislature. 12 (e) Task force members do not receive compensation as members of the task force. 13 Members of the task force who are not state employees are entitled to per diem and travel 14 expenses in the same manner permitted for members of state boards and commissions under 15 AS 39.20.180. Per diem and travel expenses for members of the commission who are 16 representatives of a state agency are the responsibility of that agency. 17 (f) Meetings of the task force are exempt from AS 44.62.310 and 44.62.312 (Open 18 Meetings of Governmental Bodies). 19 (g) Records of the task force are not subject to inspection and copying as public 20 records under AS 40.25.110 - 40.25.220. 21 * Sec. 17. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 22 read: 23 APPLICABILITY. (a) AS 12.36.200, enacted in sec. 3 of this Act, applies to all 24 evidence in the possession of an agency defined in AS 12.36.200(k) on or after January 1, 25 2011 for evidence collected before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. 26 (b) AS 12.73.010 - 12.73.900, enacted in sec. 6 of this Act, apply to offenses 27 committed before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. 28 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person whose conviction was 29 entered before July 1, 2010, has until July 1, 2013 to file an application under AS 12.73.010 - 30 12.73.900. 31 * Sec. 18. Section 16 of this Act is repealed January 1, 2013.