Legislature(1993 - 1994)
04/26/1994 04:15 PM Senate JUD
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
April 26, 1994
4:15 p.m
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Robin Taylor, Chairman
Senator Rick Halford, Vice-Chairman
Senator George Jacko
Senator Dave Donley
Senator Suzanne Little
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 319(FIN)
"An Act relating to the training of law enforcement and corrections
officers; to the establishment of surcharges to be assessed for
violations of certain traffic offenses; allowing defendants who are
unable to pay the surcharge to perform community work; creating the
Alaska police standards training fund; and providing for an
effective date."
CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 43(FIN)
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of Alaska
relating to the rights of crime victims.
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 231(FIN)
"An Act relating to when previous conduct constituting a sexual
offense may be used as an aggravating factor at sentencing."
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 313(JUD)
"An Act relating to suspended imposition of criminal sentences and
to the imposition of sentence when a suspended imposition of
sentence is revoked."
PREVIOUS SENATE COMMITTEE ACTION
HB 319 - No previous action to record.
HJR 43 - See Judiciary minutes dated 11/16/93 and State Affairs
minutes dated 3/9/94, 3/21/94, 3/23/94, and 3/28/94.
HB 231 - No previous action to record.
HB 313 - See State Affairs minutes dated 3/11/94.
WITNESS REGISTER
Representative Gail Phillips
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Prime Sponsor of HB 319
Laddie Shaw, Executive Director
Alaska Police Standards Council
Department of Public Safety
P.O. Box 111200
Juneau, AK 99811-1200
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of HB 319
C.E. Swackhammer, Deputy Commissioner
Department of Public Safety
P.O. Box 111200
Juneau, AK 99811-1200
POSITION STATEMENT: Responded to questions on HB 319
Representative Brian Porter
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Prime Sponsor of HJR 43
George Dozier, Staff to Representative Pete Kott
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered information on HB 231 & HB 313
Margo Knuth, Assistant Attorney General
Criminal Division
Department of Law
P.O. Box 110300
Juneau, AK 99811-0300
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered information on HB 231 & HB 313
ACTION NARRATIVE
TAPE 94-42, SIDE A
Number 001
CHAIRMAN ROBIN TAYLOR called the Judiciary Committee meeting to
order at 4:15 p.m. He introduced CSHB 319(FIN) (ALASKA POLICE
STNDS TRAINING FUND) as the first order of business.
REPRESENTATIVE GAIL PHILLIPS, prime sponsor of HB 319, explained
the legislation will do three basic things: (1) it will create an
Alaska Standards Training Fund within the general fund; (2) it will
provide a source of receipts for the training fund paid for by the
violators of certain traffic offenses (moving violations and
driving while intoxicated); and (3) it will allow the Legislature
to appropriate each year for the training of law enforcement and
corrections officers statewide through the Alaska Police Standards
Council. She commented that training for law enforcement is sorely
needed, and, in too many instances, is nonexistent.
Representative Phillips said the $10 and $25 increase to traffic
fines shouldn't be construed as a tax, surcharge, user fee, etc.,
since the Legislature does not set fine schedules. The Supreme
Court and municipalities raise and adjust bail forfeiture schedules
and could do so without giving the Legislature the opportunity to
direct where the increase could be used and for what purpose.
The anticipated receipts on only the collectable amounts of the
fines would be approximately $700,000 annually. The delayed
effective dates would allow the court system to implement their new
accounting and to amend their bail forfeiture schedules to reflect
this proposed increase, as well as allowing municipalities adequate
time to prepare in-house accounting systems.
Representative Phillips noted that there was a proposed Judiciary
SCS before the committee, and that she has no objections to the
proposed changes.
Number 075
SENATOR LITTLE asked what violations the $10 and $25 fees apply to.
LADDIE SHAW, Executive Director of the Alaska Police Standards
Council, answered that the $10 fee will be from uniform traffic
citations and the $25 fee will be from driving with a revoked
license or driving while intoxicated.
Number 128
SENATOR DONLEY asked how much Anchorage will benefit from this
training that will be provided. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER C.E.
SWACKHAMMER, Department of Public Safety, responded that every
municipal police department will benefit from the proceeds that go
into this training fund, and it will appropriated through the
Alaska Police Standards Council. He pointed out that the new
committee substitute provides that part of the proceeds will go to
the Public Safety Training Academy, which also does training.
SENATOR DONLEY expressed concern that because there are so many
people in Anchorage, they end up paying most of the new fees and
taxes, but the receipts tend to go out everywhere else at a
disproportionate amount. He added he would rather see these things
paid for through the communities for what services they receive.
LADDIE SHAW said Anchorage supplements more of the assessment fee,
but that is because of the population base. The dollars will still
be equitably shared by all police officers throughout the state.
Number 200
SENATOR TAYLOR moved that SCS CSHB 319(JUD) be adopted. Hearing no
objection, the motion carried.
SENATOR LITTLE moved that SCS CSHB 319(JUD) be passed out of
committee with individual recommendations. Hearing no objection,
it was so ordered.
Number 223
SENATOR TAYLOR brought CSHJR 43(FIN) (RIGHTS OF CRIME VICTIMS;
CRIMINAL ADMIN) before the committee as the next order of business.
REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN PORTER, prime sponsor of HJR 43, said the
resolution deals with victims rights. It provides two sections:
one dealing with penal administration, which reorders the priority
of the considerations of penal administration, and the other
relating to the rights of crime victims. In the second section
dealing with victims' rights, it is taking statutory provisions
that exist currently and raising them to the level of the
constitution.
Number 260
SENATOR LITTLE asked what the advantage is in putting these rights
into the constitution when they are already in statute.
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER answered it is to give them equal billing
with the constitutional rights of criminal defendants. Whenever a
victim's right, statutory as it is now, comes against a
constitutional right of a criminal defendant, the constitutional
right has greater weight.
Number 280
SENATOR LOREN LEMAN, Chairman of the Senate State Affairs
Committee, was present to explain changes made in the State Affairs
SCS. The substantive addition in that committee was in Section 1
where they added community condemnation, rights of victims of
crimes, and restitution from the offender to the current list of
protecting the public and the principle of reformation.
Number 326
SENATOR DONLEY said the most important question to him is the
question of what kind of impact this would have on existing rights.
He also has concern that the language "the Legislature shall
implement" is not a sufficient guideline to accord that the courts
would only go so far as the existing statutory language. He said
he preferred the language that was in SJR 2 (CRIME VICTIM
RIGHTS;CRIM JUSTICE ADMIN) which made several caveats, such as
giving the Legislature the authority to define what a crime victim
is. He suggested changing the language at the beginning of Section
24 to read "A victim of crime, as defined by law,"...
REPRESENTATIVE PORTER voiced concern that by putting more words in,
the more words there are to be interpreted, which increases the
chances of having varying opinions on what is trying to be said.
Number 460
SENATOR TAYLOR said one of his concerns is what happens with the
people who perceive themselves to be a victim of a crime, but the
prosecutor has decided not to prosecute. Although there used to be
a provision that a private citizen could prosecute his or her own
case, that was taken away approximately six years ago. SENATOR
DONLEY pointed out that a private citizen still has the right to
make a presentation to a grand jury.
There was extensive discussion on the statutory definition of
"victim."
TAPE 94-42, SIDE B
Number 120
SENATOR LITTLE moved the following conceptual amendment on page 1,
line 14: After "Rights of Crime Victims" insert "A victim of
crime, as defined by law, shall have the rights described in this
section as provided by law." Hearing no objection, the amendment
was adopted.
SENATOR DONLEY had also suggested that in Section 12 changing the
words "penal administration" to "criminal justice," but SENATOR
TAYLOR said he wasn't prepared to move on that question because it
was a bigger shift than he was willing to take.
Number 140
SENATOR LITTLE moved that on page 2, line 9, delete the sentence
"The legislature shall implement this section." SENATOR TAYLOR
stated his objection of doing so at this point because he thinks it
is important to have in the constitution the authorization that the
legislature should, in fact, implement the section. The roll was
taken with the following result: Senators Donley and Little voted
"Yea" and Senator Taylor voted "Nay." The Chairman stated the
amendment had failed.
Number 181
SENATOR TAYLOR said there was still the question of "penal" versus
"criminal," as well as the question of a proposed paragraph (b)
regarding assessments against convicted defendants, and he
preferred to hold HJR 43 for a couple of days in order to work on
drafting acceptable language.
Number 203
SENATOR TAYLOR brought CSHB 231(FIN) (AGGRAVATING/MITIGATING
FACTORS;SEX CRIMES) before the committee as the next order of
business.
GEORGE DOZIER, staff to Representative Pete Kott, explained the
legislation addresses aggravating factors and the presumptive
sentencing of sex criminals. It has been pointed out by the Alaska
Sentencing Commission that there are certain gaps in the coverage
of aggravating factors in current statute. Currently, there is no
aggravating factor where a defendant is convicted of sexual abuse
of a minor and has previously committed sexual assault against an
adult, and HB 231 makes that an aggravating factor. If the bill
becomes law, then any individual that is subject to presumptive
sentencing for a sex crime and also committed the same or similar
conduct which is a sex crime it will be considered to be an
aggravating factor, whether or not it was against an adult or a
minor.
Number 273
MARGO KNUTH, Department of Law, said this is a recommendation made
by the Alaska Sentencing Commission. She agreed that there is a
loophole in the law and passage of the legislation will close that
gap.
Number 287
SENATOR LITTLE moved that CSHB 231(FIN) be passed out of committee
with individual recommendations. Hearing no objection, it was so
ordered.
Number 290
SENATOR TAYLOR brought CSHB 313(JUD) (IMPOSITION, REVOCATION,
SUSPENDED SENTENCES) before the committee as the final order of
business.
GEORGE DOZIER, staff to Representative Pete Kott, said the
legislation addresses the subject of suspended impositions of
sentencing. Currently, sentencing judges have the option of
imposing what is known as a suspended imposition of sentence. The
individual is placed on probation for a period time and reasonable
conditions are imposed for that probationary period. At the
conclusion of the probationary period, if the defendant has
successfully completed his probation and has complied with the
conditions, then the court has the option of vacating the judgment
against him and never sentencing him. If, instead, the defendant
does not comply with the conditions of his probation, then the
court may revoke his probation and sentence him for the underlying
crime. This is used mostly with young defendants and for minor
type of offenses. However, if a judge wants to impose a suspended
imposition of sentence for an extremely minor offense, which is
what this procedure is designed for, he is limited to a very short
span of time that he can place the individual on probation, and
this can cause problems. HB 313 grants the court in class B
misdemeanors the authority to impose a suspended imposition of
sentence or to place the individual on probation for a period of up
to one year in granting the suspended imposition of sentence.
Number 340
MARGO KNUTH, Department of Law, clarified that it isn't the period
of probation - it is the period of time that the SIS can be
granted. She added that judges, prosecutors and public defenders
all agree that they would like to see this change.
Number 358
SENATOR LITTLE moved that CSHB 313(JUD) be passed out of committee
with individual recommendations. Hearing no objection, it was so
ordered.
There being no further business to come before the committee, the
meeting was adjourned at 5:35 p.m.
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