SCS CSHB 6(FIN) AM S: "An Act relating to minors and amending laws relating to the disclosure of information relating to certain minors; and amending Rule 3(c), Alaska Delinquency Rules."
00SENATE CS FOR CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 6(FIN) am S 01 "An Act relating to minors and amending laws relating to the disclosure of 02 information relating to certain minors; and amending Rule 3(c), Alaska 03 Delinquency Rules." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 * Section 1. AS 47.10.092(a) is amended to read: 06 (a) Notwithstanding AS 47.10.090 and 47.10.093, a parent or legal guardian 07 of a minor subject to a proceeding under AS 47.10.010 - 47.10.142 may disclose 08 confidential or privileged information about the minor, including information that has 09 been lawfully obtained from agency or court files, to the governor, the lieutenant 10 governor, a legislator, the ombudsman appointed under AS 24.55, the attorney general, 11 and the commissioners of health and social services, administration, or public safety, 12 or an employee of these persons, for review or use in their official capacities. The 13 department may disclose additional confidential or privileged information and 14 make available for inspection documents about the minor to these state officials
01 or employees for review or use in their official capacities. A person to whom 02 disclosure is made under this section may not disclose confidential or privileged 03 information about the minor to a person not authorized to receive it. 04 * Sec. 2. AS 47.12.110 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 05 (d) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, a court hearing on a petition seeking 06 the adjudication of a minor as a delinquent shall be open to the public, except as 07 prohibited or limited by order of the court, if 08 (1) the department files with the court a motion asking the court to 09 open the hearing to the public, and the petition seeking adjudication of the minor as 10 a delinquent is based on 11 (A) the minor's alleged commission of an offense, and the 12 minor has knowingly failed to comply with all the terms and conditions 13 required of the minor by the department or imposed on the minor in a court 14 order entered under AS 47.12.040(a)(2) or 47.12.120; 15 (B) the minor's alleged commission of 16 (i) a crime against a person that is punishable as a 17 felony; 18 (ii) a crime in which the minor employed a deadly 19 weapon, as that term is defined in AS 11.81.900(b), in committing the 20 crime; 21 (iii) arson under AS 11.46.400 - 11.46.410; 22 (iv) burglary under AS 11.46.300; 23 (v) distribution of child pornography under 24 AS 11.61.125; 25 (vi) promoting prostitution in the first degree under 26 AS 11.66.110; or 27 (vii) misconduct involving a controlled substance under 28 AS 11.71 involving the delivery of a controlled substance or the 29 possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, other than 30 an offense under AS 11.71.040 or 11.71.050; or 31 (C) the minor's alleged commission of a felony and the minor
01 was 16 years of age or older at the time of commission of the offense when the 02 minor has previously been convicted or adjudicated a delinquent minor based 03 on the minor's commission of an offense that is a felony; or 04 (2) the minor agrees to a public hearing on the petition seeking 05 adjudication of the minor as a delinquent. 06 * Sec. 3. AS 47.12.300(c) is amended to read: 07 (c) Except when disclosure of the name of a minor is authorized or 08 required by this chapter, the [THE] name or picture of a minor under the jurisdiction 09 of the court may not be made public in connection with the minor's status as a 10 delinquent unless authorized by order of the court. 11 * Sec. 4. AS 47.12.310(a) is amended to read: 12 (a) Except as specified in AS 47.12.315, 47.12.320, [AS 47.12.320] and (b) - 13 (g) of this section, all information and social records pertaining to a minor who is 14 subject to this chapter or AS 47.17 prepared by or in the possession of a federal, state, 15 or municipal agency or employee in the discharge of the agency's or employee's 16 official duty, including driver's license actions under AS 28.15.185, are privileged and 17 may not be disclosed directly or indirectly to anyone without a court order. 18 * Sec. 5. AS 47.12.310(b) is amended to read: 19 (b) A state or municipal agency or employee may disclose information 20 regarding a case to 21 (1) a guardian ad litem appointed by the court or to a citizen review 22 panel for permanency planning authorized by AS 47.14.200 - 47.14.220; 23 (2) a person or an agency requested to provide consultation or services 24 for a minor who is subject to the jurisdiction of the court under this chapter; 25 (3) school officials as may be necessary to protect the safety of school 26 students and staff or to enable the school to provide appropriate counseling and 27 supportive services to meet the needs of a minor about whom information is 28 disclosed; 29 (4) a governmental agency as may be necessary to obtain that agency's 30 assistance for the department in its investigation or to obtain physical custody of a 31 minor;
01 (5) a state or municipal law enforcement agency as may be necessary 02 for a specific investigation being conducted by that agency or for disclosures by that 03 agency to protect the public safety; and 04 (6) a victim as may be necessary to inform the victim about the 05 disposition or resolution of a case involving a minor. 06 * Sec. 6. AS 47.12.310(c) is amended to read: 07 (c) A state or municipal law enforcement agency 08 (1) shall disclose information regarding a case that is needed by the 09 person or agency charged with making a preliminary investigation for the information 10 of the court under this chapter; 11 (2) may disclose to the public information regarding a criminal offense 12 in which a minor is a suspect, victim, or witness if the minor is not identified by the 13 disclosure; 14 (3) may disclose to school officials information regarding a case as may 15 be necessary to protect the safety of school students and staff or to enable the school 16 to provide appropriate counseling and supportive services to meet the needs of a 17 minor about whom information is disclosed; 18 (4) may disclose to the public information regarding a case as may be 19 necessary to protect the safety of the public; and 20 (5) may disclose to a victim or to the victim's insurance company 21 information, including copies of reports, as necessary for civil litigation or insurance 22 claims pursued by or against the victim. 23 * Sec. 7. AS 47.12.310(d) is amended to read: 24 (d) Upon request of a victim, the department shall make every reasonable 25 effort to notify the victim as soon as practicable, by telephone or in writing, when a 26 delinquent minor is to be released from placement in a juvenile facility under 27 AS 47.12.120(b)(1). The notice under this subsection must include the expected date 28 of the delinquent minor's release, the geographic area in which the delinquent minor 29 is required to reside, and other pertinent information concerning the delinquent minor's 30 conditions of release that may affect the victim. 31 * Sec. 8. AS 47.12 is amended by adding a new section to read:
01 Sec. 47.12.315. Public disclosure of information in agency records relating 02 to certain minors. (a) Notwithstanding AS 47.12.310, when an agency takes action 03 under AS 47.12.040(a)(1) to adjust a matter, or when under AS 47.12.040(a)(2) the 04 court directs the agency to adjust the matter, the agency 05 (1) shall, for a minor who is at least 13 years of age at the time of 06 commission of the offense, disclose to the public the name of the minor, the name or 07 names of the parent, parents, or guardian of the minor, the action required by the 08 agency to be taken by the minor under AS 47.12.060 to adjust the matter, and 09 information about the offense exclusive of information that identifies the victim of the 10 offense, if the minor was, under AS 47.12.020, previously alleged to be a delinquent 11 minor on the basis of the minor's commission of at least one offense and, on the basis 12 of that allegation, a state agency has, under AS 47.12.040(a), been asked to make a 13 preliminary inquiry to determine if any action on that matter is appropriate, and, if the 14 minor is alleged to be a delinquent minor on the basis of the minor's commission of 15 another offense, exercise of agency jurisdiction is based on the minor's alleged 16 commission of that other offense, and that other offense is one of the following: 17 (A) a crime against a person that is punishable as a felony; 18 (B) a crime in which the minor employed a deadly weapon, as 19 that term is defined in AS 11.81.900(b), in committing the crime; 20 (C) arson under AS 11.46.400 - 11.46.410; 21 (D) burglary under AS 11.46.300; 22 (E) distribution of child pornography under AS 11.61.125; 23 (F) promoting prostitution in the first degree under 24 AS 11.66.110; or 25 (G) misconduct involving a controlled substance under 26 AS 11.71 involving the delivery of a controlled substance or the possession of 27 a controlled substance with intent to deliver, other than an offense under 28 AS 11.71.040 or 11.71.050; and 29 (2) may, for a minor who is at least 13 years of age at the time of 30 commission of the offense, disclose to the public the name of the minor, the name or 31 names of the parent, parents, or guardian of the minor, the action required by the
01 agency to be taken by the minor under AS 47.12.060 to adjust the matter, and 02 information about the offense exclusive of information that identifies the victim of the 03 offense if the minor has knowingly failed to comply with all terms and conditions 04 required of the minor by the agency to adjust the matter under AS 47.12.060(b). 05 (b) The department shall publicly disclose the name of a minor, the name or 06 names of the minor's parent, parents, or guardian, and the alleged offense exclusive 07 of information that identifies the victim of the offense, and, when available, the 08 outcome of proceedings before the court if, under AS 47.12.040(a)(1)(B) or 09 AS 47.12.040(a)(2), the department files with the court a petition seeking adjudication 10 of the minor as a delinquent based on 11 (1) the minor's alleged commission of an offense, the minor was at 12 least 13 years of age at the time of commission of the offense, and the minor has 13 knowingly failed to comply with all the terms and conditions required of the minor by 14 the department or imposed on the minor in a court order entered under 15 AS 47.12.040(a)(2) or 47.12.120; 16 (2) the minor's alleged commission of an offense set out in this 17 paragraph and the minor was at least 13 years of age at the time of commission of the 18 offense; the provisions of this paragraph apply to the minor's commission of 19 (A) a crime against a person that is punishable as a felony; 20 (B) a crime in which the minor employed a deadly weapon, as 21 that term is defined in AS 11.81.900(b), in committing the crime; 22 (C) arson under AS 11.46.400 - 11.46.410; 23 (D) burglary under AS 11.46.300; 24 (E) distribution of child pornography under AS 11.61.125; 25 (F) promoting prostitution in the first degree under 26 AS 11.66.110; or 27 (G) misconduct involving a controlled substance under 28 AS 11.71 involving the delivery of a controlled substance or the possession of 29 a controlled substance with intent to deliver, other than an offense under 30 AS 11.71.040 or 11.71.050; or 31 (3) the minor's alleged commission of a felony and the minor was 16
01 years of age or older at the time of commission of the offense when the minor has 02 previously been convicted or adjudicated a delinquent minor based on the minor's 03 commission of an offense that is a felony. 04 (c) If, under AS 47.12.060(a), the agency determines that a matter should be 05 dismissed or if, under AS 47.12.120(c), the court finds that a minor is not delinquent 06 and dismisses the case against the minor, the minor may request the department to 07 disclose information about the matter or the case to the public. If the minor makes a 08 request under this subsection, the department shall disclose to the public information 09 about the disposition of the matter or case under AS 47.12.060(a) or 47.12.120(c), as 10 appropriate, exclusive of information that identifies the victim of the alleged offense. 11 (d) When required by this section to disclose information, 12 (1) the department or other agency may not disclose the name of an 13 out-of-home care provider, as that term is defined in AS 47.14.299, with whom the 14 minor was living at the time the minor was alleged to have committed the offense if 15 the minor had been placed in out-of-home care with that provider on other than a 16 permanent or long-term basis; 17 (2) if the department or other agency maintains the information to be 18 disclosed by electronic means that can be recovered from a computer data base, the 19 department or agency may disclose the information in that medium. 20 (e) The department or an agency may not release information about a minor 21 under this section if the offense allegedly committed by the minor on which the 22 information is based occurred before January 1, 1998. The authority to release 23 information under this section is limited to five years from the date the department or 24 other agency is first required or authorized to make the disclosure. However, the 25 limitation of this section does not apply if the department or other agency determines 26 that during the five-year period the minor 27 (1) has knowingly failed to make all restitution payments required of 28 the minor by AS 47.12.060(b) or 47.12.120(b)(4); or 29 (2) has committed a crime punishable as a felony. 30 (f) When disclosure is required under this section, the department may petition 31 the court for an order prohibiting the disclosure. The court may grant the petition if,
01 on the basis of information presented in the petition or at an in camera hearing held 02 on the petition, the court finds that 03 (1) the crime was an isolated incident and the minor does not present 04 any further danger to the public; or 05 (2) the victim agrees that disclosure is inappropriate. 06 * Sec. 9. Rule 3(c), Alaska Delinquency Rules, is amended to read: 07 (c) Admission to Hearings [GENERAL PUBLIC EXCLUDED]. The 08 provisions of AS 47.12.110(d) apply to govern admission of the public to 09 adjudication hearings. Disposition hearings, temporary detention hearings, 10 hearings in the nature of an arraignment on a petition, and other proceedings 11 before the court [HEARINGS] are not open to the public unless requested by the 12 juvenile. However, the court may, after due consideration for the welfare of the 13 juvenile and the interests of the public, admit specific individuals to a hearing or 14 proceeding, and shall admit victims of the juvenile's offense to hearings or 15 proceedings as required by AS 47.12 [AS 47.10.070(b)]. 16 * Sec. 10. APPLICABILITY. In AS 47.12.315, added by sec. 8 of this Act, when 17 disclosure of information is dependent on the minor's previous conviction or adjudication as 18 a delinquent, or on the minor's failure to comply with all terms and conditions required of or 19 imposed on the minor, the Department of Health and Social Services or other agency required 20 to make the disclosure shall consider the minor's previous conviction or delinquency 21 adjudication, or a term or condition required or imposed on the minor, that occurred before 22 the effective date of this Act, but may not consider a conviction or adjudication that occurred 23 or a term or condition that was required or imposed earlier than five years before the effective 24 date of this Act.