02/27/2012 01:30 PM Senate JUDICIARY

                 SB 210-CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
2:42:54 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR FRENCH announced the consideration of SB 210.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR LESIL MCGUIRE, sponsor of SB 210, noted there was a new                                                                 
committee substitute (CS).                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
At ease from 2:43 p.m. to 2:45 p.m. to distribute the CS.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
2:45:28 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR FRENCH reconvened the meeting and asked for a motion to                                                                   
adopt the proposed CS.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI moved to adopt CS for SB 210, labeled 27-                                                                  
LS1362\M, as the working document.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR FRENCH announced that without objection, version M was                                                                    
before the committee.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR MCGUIRE read the following sponsor statement into the                                                                   
record. [Original punctuation provided.]                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     On February  8, 2012 the Children's  Justice Task Force                                                                    
     (CJA)       a       federally-mandated,       statewide                                                                    
     multidisciplinary  group  presented their  findings  to                                                                    
     the  Joint Senate  Judiciary and  HESS Committees  with                                                                    
     their  system recommendations  for improvement  through                                                                    
     criminal  legislation.  I  became  aware  through  this                                                                    
     presentation,    research,    and    other    important                                                                    
     conversations that we have  shortcomings in the current                                                                    
     criminal  laws regarding  the  prosecution  of harm  to                                                                    
     children.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
     Those  that   suffer  from  these  short   comings  are                                                                    
     Alaska's children  and the  numbers are  staggering. In                                                                    
     2008,   approximately  12,400   children  were   likely                                                                    
     victims  of  at  least one  incident  of  maltreatment,                                                                    
     which  breaks  down to  34  children  per day.  In  the                                                                    
     instance  of  a child  death,  1  out  of every  5  was                                                                    
     related to maltreatment.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     SB  210  works with  the  recommendations  from CJA  to                                                                    
     create tougher penalties on  crimes committed against a                                                                    
     child.  The bill  includes  several different  measures                                                                    
     including  modifying   statutes  to   create  increased                                                                    
     criminal   liability   for    assaults   to   children,                                                                    
     strengthens statutes regarding  exposure of children to                                                                    
     drugs, increases penalties  when a parent intentionally                                                                    
     withholds  adequate  food  or liquids,  and  creates  a                                                                    
     criminal  law  that  prohibits an  incarcerated  person                                                                    
     from   contacting  a   victim   prior   to  trial   and                                                                    
     sentencing.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
     Together,  the   Legislature  can  assist   our  future                                                                    
     generations by  providing them  with laws  that protect                                                                    
     their  rights and  create safer  communities for  their                                                                    
     growth and  development. I urge  your support  for this                                                                    
     legislation.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
She recapped  several cases that  were described during  the task                                                               
force presentation  and said Section  2 addresses  deprivation of                                                               
food   and   water   and  Section   3   addresses   torture   and                                                               
disfigurement, including strangulation.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
2:52:06 PM                                                                                                                    
AMY  SALTZMAN,  staff  to Senator  Lesil  McGuire,  reviewed  the                                                               
changes that appear in SB 210, version M.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
The  title was  changed to  "An  Act relating  to crimes  against                                                               
children; and providing for an effective date."                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
Section 1 - On page 1, lines 11  and 15, age 10 was raised to age                                                               
12.                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR FRENCH noted  that assault in the third degree  was a class                                                               
C felony assault.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
MS. SALTZMAN said  the next change appears in Section  2, page 3,                                                               
lines 9-10.  A new paragraph  (4) was added to  [AS 11.51.100(a)]                                                               
to address reckless  failure to provide adequate  food and liquid                                                               
to a child such that it impairs the child's health.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
She noted that the sponsor was still working on that language.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  MCGUIRE highlighted  that it  adds an  additional reason                                                               
for which a  person can be convicted of the  crime of endangering                                                               
the welfare of a child in the first degree.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR FRENCH noted that would be a class C felony.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
MS. SALTZMAN noted  that the sponsor was referring  to Section 3,                                                               
page 3, lines  12-13. The next change appears in  Section 4, page                                                               
3, lines  22-30. It adds a  new paragraph (C) to  the definitions                                                               
section, [AS 11.81.900(56)], that  talks about physical injury to                                                               
a  person  under  age  16   involving  serious  disfigurement  or                                                               
impairment. She  noted that the  discussion was still  open about                                                               
whether the term "bruising" was sufficiently specific.                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR FRENCH confirmed that term appeared on page 3, line 25.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  MCGUIRE  clarified  that this  modification  raises  the                                                               
definition of physical  abuse in this circumstance  to assault in                                                               
the first degree, a class C felony.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR FRENCH said it would depend  on the means by which a person                                                               
caused serious physical injury.  Any place that "serious physical                                                               
injury" is plugged into the statute  it would be modified by this                                                               
new paragraph (C).                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
2:55:49 PM                                                                                                                    
CINDI  STANTON,  Sergeant,  Anchorage  Police  Department  (APD),                                                               
Anchorage,  AK, said  she  was currently  the  supervisor of  the                                                               
Crimes  Against  Children  Unit,  and  had  worked  on  this  new                                                               
legislation for  18 months as a  member of the Child  Justice Act                                                               
Task Force. She  stated support for the changes in  version M and                                                               
emphasized that  the bill will  help get felony charges  in cases                                                               
where it is difficult now. She cited several cases.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
2:58:47 PM                                                                                                                    
KATHLEEN BALDWIN-JOHNSON,  MD, member, Alaska  Children's Justice                                                               
Act Task Force,  spoke in support of  SB 210. She said  she was a                                                               
family physician  in Wasilla,  but spends a  majority of  time on                                                               
child  abuse  medicine.  These children  have  been  sexually  or                                                               
physically  abused,  neglected  and  endangered  by  exposure  to                                                               
drugs. The task  force identified gaps in the current  law and SB
 addresses  these omissions. Alaska is  combatting an epidemic                                                               
of  interfamilial violence  and sexual  assault and  children are                                                               
commonly victims.  A solution  to this will  ultimately lie  in a                                                               
cultural shift  where children are  valued and  cherished members                                                               
of  society, but  a  necessary  step for  that  to  occur is  for                                                               
Alaskan law to clearly state that child abuse will not be                                                                       
tolerated, she stated.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
3:02:06 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR FRENCH stated that public testimony would continue at a                                                                   
future meeting.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
[SB 210 was held in committee.]