Legislature(1993 - 1994)
02/24/1994 03:00 PM House HES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 336 - MINORS COMMITTING CRIMES WITH GUNS AND KNIVES REP. CON BUNDE, Prime Sponsor of HB 336, indicated there was a committee substitute (CS) for the bill. REP. G. DAVIS made a motion to adopt the CS for HB 336. CHAIR TOOHEY, hearing no objections, declared the CS for HB 336 was so moved. Number 848 REP. BUNDE spoke to the CS. He stated that the legislation addresses crimes perpetrated by young people, specifically youths in the local school districts. He said there is a difficult situation between police departments and school districts in that they are unable to communicate with each other regarding the acts or the threat of violent juveniles. He also said the situation exists between school districts. He explained a scenario where a youth is suspended for having a gun on school campus and is expelled from school. He maintained that the youth could enroll in another school district, and that the first school district cannot legally communicate with the second district regarding the youth's criminal behavior. REP. BUNDE said his intention is to have the names of youths who have been convicted of violent crimes known throughout the community, so the community can protect themselves. He felt, with that information known, the community can counsel their children accordingly. He also felt that by making the names known, it would encourage parents to be more responsible. REP. BUNDE said the focus of the CS is contained in page 4 of the proposal. He said the provision states that if an individual is thirteen years of age or older and in the possession of a knife or firearm, and has threatened or used the weapon, the privacy law that protects the privacy of juveniles would not be applicable, and the youth's name would be available to the press. School districts could communicate with one another, and the police could inform school districts of any arrests made on violent youths. Number 934 CHAIR TOOHEY clarified and asked if the youth must be convicted of the violent crime before the name can be divulged. REP. BUNDE said yes; they are innocent until proven guilty. Number 940 REP. KOTT asked again if the police, community, or school district would not be notified unless the youth is convicted. REP. BUNDE said yes. REP. KOTT was uncomfortable with the idea of a "problem child," who might be arrested and released back into the community, into the school district, and into a classroom setting. REP. BUNDE said the youth is not a problem child until convicted. He said the youth would be charged, "much like you or I", and would be innocent until proven guilty. REP. KOTT felt that most parents would want to be notified if a child in the school that their children attends had been arrested for a violent crime. Number 977 CHAIR TOOHEY interjected that it would not be legal to divulge the information without a conviction, but she agreed with Rep. Kott's sentiment. REP. KOTT indicated the similarity between SB 54 and HB 336 in regard to disclosure of records. REP. BUNDE stated that SB 54 deals with murder and HB 336 focuses on the threat or act of a violent crime. REP. KOTT said, "it also includes other crimes... in disclosing the names of juveniles." REP. BUNDE said "If you recall, I had a companion bill and if it's still similar... it's murder or Class A felonies. These things (offenses) are not Class A felonies." Number 007 REP. VEZEY asked Rep. Bunde to clarify the relationship between the right to privacy and juvenile disclosure laws. He asked why Rep. Bunde kept referring to the rights of privacy. REP. BUNDE stated he was using a more generic term of privacy, indicating that the current statute does not allow the disclosure of information. He said the term privacy was used to help in describing the problem being experienced between the police department and the Anchorage school district. He said he was not referring to the constitutional right to privacy. Number 040 REP. VEZEY said the bill was an improvement over the existing law, but he felt that juveniles should not be protected at any level. REP. BUNDE asserted that previous legislation had decided that some children are capable of rehabilitation, and that making their offenses known publicly would impede the rehabilitation process by brandishing them as a criminal. Number 067 CHAIR TOOHEY asked if the bill should be held over and if a subcommittee should be formed, or should it be passed on to the Judiciary Committee. REP. BUNDE said, "I don't think your Co-Chair is anxious to do that." REP. VEZEY said his comments spoke to the legislation in a general way, but he would support the bill as he felt it was a definite improvement to existing law. Number 096 CHAIR TOOHEY asked for further testimony. Number 100 LANNEA LEE, Representative, Close-Up, testified in support of HB 336. She explained to the committee that the members of Close-up conducted a "mock trial" that passed legislation on HB 336. To enable the passage, they substituted the word firearm with deadly weapon. She said deadly weapon would include a knife, an axe, a club, metal knuckles, or an explosive. She felt that the majority of crimes are committed with something other than a firearm. She associated herself with the intentions of Rep. Bunde to have the juveniles' names made public. She felt the publicity would decrease criminal offenses. She further stated that a youth is in the same state of mind that an adult is in when committing a violent crime. Number 165 CHAIR TOOHEY said she would like to close public testimony and urged those who did not testify to follow the legislation to the Judiciary Committee. REP. NICHOLIA asked, if the bill was passed, could the federal government cut all Title 4 funds if there is too much information disclosed on minors? Number 200 DONNA SCHULTZ, Associate Coordinator, Division of Family and Youth Services, Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS), replied that she was unsure if there would be an impact on Title 4 funding, and said she would find out as soon as possible. She said there are other instances where federal funding could be cut due to records and information disclosure. TAPE 94-28, SIDE B Number 000 REP. NICHOLIA referred to Lannea Lee and clarified that HB 336 addresses violent crimes with the threat of death, not murder. CHAIR TOOHEY asked the pleasure of the committee. REP. G. DAVIS made a motion to pass the CS for HB 336 with fiscal note to the next committee of referral with individual recommendations. Number 245 REP. NICHOLIA said the body of the bill has changed from the original bill and asked if there would be a relative change in the fiscal note. REP. BUNDE said no. REP. BRICE indicated that there have been concerns that the Department of Health and Social Services may have federal funding problems that won't be reflected in the fiscal note. CHAIR TOOHEY said the issue could be addressed by the Finance or Judiciary Committee if that would be acceptable to Rep. Brice. REP. NICHOLIA said that was acceptable and recommended sending a note to the next committee of referral. Number 288 CHAIR TOOHEY, hearing no objections, stated that the CS for HB 336 was so moved. (Note: Rep. Bunde assumed the position of Chair for the remainder of the meeting.) Number 315 CHAIR BUNDE brought HB 320 to the table and announced that there would be testimony heard via teleconference and from Juneau as well.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|