04/10/1996 01:30 PM Senate JUD

             HB 104 DISCLOSURE OF JUVENILE RECORDS                            
                                                                              
 REPRESENTATIVE PETE KOTT, sponsor of HB 104, explained the proposed           
 committee substitute eliminates material added by the Senate HESS             
 committee because it interfered with federal funding.                         
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR clarified the proposed committee substitute is                
 labelled 276-J Chenoweth, 4/10/96.                                            
                                                                               
 SENATOR MILLER moved the adoption of the proposed committee                   
 substitute in lieu of the original bill.  SENATOR ADAMS objected              
 and asked for verification of the federal funding issue from the              
 Department of Health and Social Services.                                     
                                                                               
 REPRESENTATIVE KOTT explained the bill addresses some of the                  
 juvenile crime problems by allowing for the release of information            
 on juveniles, on request, if the crime committed is classified as             
 a felony if committed by an adult.  In addition, the committee                
 substitute also allows release of the parents' names to ensure                
 proper identification of the juvenile, and to place some                      
 responsibility on the parents for controlling the behavior of their           
 children.                                                                     
                                                                               
 Number 581                                                                    
                                                                               
 DIANE WORLEY, Director of the Division of Family and Youth Services           
 in DHSS, testified she is pleased with the proposed committee                 
 substitute as the previous version of the bill did interfere with             
 $7 million in federal funding.  She expressed concern about                   
 disclosure of juvenile records in general, and the broadness of the           
 disclosure provision in HB 104.  DFYS believes, at this time, some            
 information should be disclosed, but this legislation allows                  
 disclosure at the time of arrest, and does not include any specific           
 ages.  If a minor was found to be innocent at a later date, there             
 is no recourse for publishing that information.  Adolescents make             
 mistakes, but often shape up if they have strong support in their             
 home environment.  This bill could lead to stereotyping, or                   
 identifying adolescents as criminals, when the situation could have           
 been self-correcting.                                                         
                                                                               
 SENATOR ADAMS asked Ms. Worley if a statutory age limit exists.               
 MS. WORLEY was unsure, and added many of the bills circulating                
 contain different age limits.                                                 
                                                                               
 Number 549                                                                    
                                                                               
 LAURIE OTTO, Deputy Attorney General of the Department of Law,                
 explained different statutes contain different age limits, for                
 example juveniles can be finger printed at age 14.  There is no               
 existing statutory provision for disclosure.  The Department of Law           
 also opposes the disclosure of an arrest because no information can           
 be released about the case afterward, according to statute.                   
                                                                               
 SENATOR ELLIS asked whether the names of parents who have                     
 voluntarily emancipated their children would be released.                     
                                                                               
 MS. OTTO replied they would.                                                  
                                                                               
 Number 505                                                                    
                                                                               
 LYNN STIMLER questioned whether Title 4E funds would be lost if               
 arrests are reported, under the current configuration of DFYS.                
 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR responded that is correct.                                    
                                                                               
 MS. STIMLER stated the ACLU would be very concerned about reporting           
 an arrest rather than a conviction.  She asked Representative Kott            
 what the rate of false arrests, or arrests that do not result in              
 convictions, of juveniles are.                                                
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR intervened, and explained version J is Section 3 of           
 the previous bill.                                                            
 ROGER POPPE, legislative aide to Representative Kott, estimated the           
 number of arrests without convictions is about one percent.  He               
 explained the bill allows the Department of Public Safety to                  
 release the names of juvenile arrests.  Although the sponsor agreed           
 it was unfair to release the arrest information without follow up,            
 DFYS received a determination from the federal government that                
 prohibits information from being released by DFYS or the courts.              
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR stated that although there may be a lot of contact            
 between police and juveniles, in the majority of cases, a report is           
 made to DFYS who handles the case from that point.                            
                                                                               
 MS. STIMLER emphasized ACLU is concerned about the piecemeal                  
 approach toward the release of juvenile records by the legislature.           
 Many bills are circulating that do not reconcile with each other.             
 If release of material short of a conviction is allowed, there will           
 be a due process problem.  She cautioned that this bill is                    
 premature without the Governor's Task Force recommendations.  She             
 repeated that this bill will give power to an agency that has only            
 been given to the courts in the past.                                         
                                                                               
 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR commented that many other states can release                  
 information, without a threat of loss of federal funds, about a               
 juvenile's arrest and conviction, or non-conviction, because they             
 have separate departments for juveniles with civil concerns and               
 juveniles with criminal concerns.  He stated that approach may be             
 used in the future, and agreed that the state is currently using a            
 piecemeal approach.                                                           
                                                                               
 SENATOR ADAMS removed his objection to the adoption of the                    
 committee substitute, therefore it was so ordered.                            
                                                                               
 SENATOR GREEN moved SCSHB 104(JUD) out of committee with individual           
 recommendations.  SENATOR ADAMS objected.  The motion carried with            
 Senators Taylor, Green and Miller voting "yea," and Senator Adams             
 voting "nay."