Legislature(2003 - 2004)
03/05/2003 01:30 PM Senate HES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
SB 8-TAMPERING WITH PUBLIC RECORDS
SB 55-TAMPERING WITH PUBLIC RECORDS
MR. RICHARD BENAVIDES, staff to Senator Bettye Davis, sponsor of
SB 8, read the following sponsor statement:
The tampering of public records at any time is illegal
and can create problems and set in motion a series of
unintended consequences. However, when the tampering
involves the records of a child under the age of 18 in
the care and custody of the state, those consequences
can be grave. While I've not personally discovered
through my work the instances of this occurring here
in Alaska, throughout the country caseworkers that
falsify records and fail to check on children are not
new concerns. These issues took on new meaning in
light of five-year old Lila Wilson, a Miami girl who
disappeared while in the care of the State of Florida.
In that case, the department is still struggling to
explain why it failed to check on her properly for
more than a year.
Accurate and honest record keeping are of paramount
importance to the state in decisions that need to be
made for our most vulnerable children. The mere fact
that these children are already in the care or custody
of the state suggests that they must be handled with
extra care. We must take that extra step to ensure
that all records dealing with their care are
maintained to the highest standards of integrity. SB 8
is designed as a disincentive to those who would
falsify these records.
CHAIR FRED DYSON told members that, as the sponsor of SB 55, he
was motivated by the public and media attention to the Florida
case to file a similar bill, not knowing that Senator Davis had
already filed one. After filing SB 55, he realized it was not
specific to public records of children and gave some thought to
limiting the bill's scope to only those records. He decided that
no public records should be altered because there are two more
categories of people he is concerned about. He has been told
that Alaska does a better job than most states regarding
protection of adults in the prison system. Alaska has very few
cases of prisoner rape and few cases of prisoner assault.
However, he has heard anecdotally that Alaska's reputation may
not be as good as the official record indicates.
CHAIR DYSON said he is also concerned about disabled adults who
reside in senior centers, particularly community based programs.
He pointed out that every legislator has probably heard a
constituent complain that a relative was maltreated. He does not
want a service provider's record of maltreatment of a disabled
adult to be covered up. For those reasons, he chose not to limit
SB 55 to children only.
SENATOR DAVIS asked Chair Dyson if he investigated whether the
affected statute applies to the records of people who are not in
state custody.
CHAIR DYSON responded that it is his understanding that altering
any public record, whether a person is in custody or not, would
be a crime.
SENATOR BETTYE DAVIS asked whether he was referring to a
different part of the statute because SB 8 applies to a
provision in statute that refers to children in state custody or
state care.
MR. BENAVIDES said he spoke to Ms. Carpeneti in the Department
of Law who said there was no problem with SB 8.
SENATOR DAVIS said she agrees it is important to consider adults
in custody but she focused on children because she knows of
cases, "even here where we don't always know where our children
are."
SENATOR DYSON said he sat with the former commissioner of the
Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) and looked at
autopsy pictures of children who had died while in state
custody. Although he saw no evidence of records being changed,
had the Division of Family and Youth Services (DFYS) responded
earlier to reports of suspicion of harm, lives could have been
saved.
SENATOR DAVIS said she does not believe the problem of tampering
with records is systemic in Alaska as it might be elsewhere.
However, she does believe that SB 8 will provide protection in
the future when there may be a shortage of workers to carry the
load and records might be altered to cover problems. She said
that she would agree to add the public records of adults to her
bill if doing so does not present a legal issue.
MS. JOANNE GIBBENS, program administrator for DFYS, told members
that the department agrees with the concept of both SB 8 and SB
55. DHSS agrees that any individual who knowingly falsifies or
tampers with the public record of any individual in the care or
custody of the state should be subject to criminal charges. She
noted that records regarding the cases of children in the
custody of DHSS are critical to document the actions taken by
department staff, especially social workers and probation
officers. The courts rely on those records to determine whether
the actions taken are in the best interest of the children and
families served. Records are often subpoenaed by the legal
system and they hold social workers and juvenile probation
officers accountable. She deferred to the Department of Law to
answer any legal questions.
SENATOR DAVIS pointed out that SB 8 has a Senate Judiciary
Committee referral, which is where the legal question could be
addressed.
CHAIR DYSON asked Senator Davis if, aside from the inclusion of
adults in SB 55, whether anything else should be changed.
SENATOR DAVIS said the bills are essentially the same except for
the inclusion of adults.
CHAIR DYSON asked Senator Davis if it is her intention to have
the bill apply to the records of people who are not in state
custody, as well as those who are.
SENATOR DAVIS said she does not have any problem with including
them if [there are no legal complications].
CHAIR DYSON announced a brief at-ease to wait for a
representative from the Department of Law.
Upon reconvening the meeting, CHAIR DYSON asked Ms. Carpeneti if
she could provide the committee with a statutory definition of
the word "care" and whether it applies to anyone receiving a
state benefit.
MS. ANNE CARPENETI, Assistant Attorney General, Department of
Law (DOL), told members she would have to research that question
and could not provide an answer at this time.
CHAIR DYSON said he was thinking about the records of people who
are not only incarcerated or in the custody of DFYS, but also
about the records of incapacitated adults in treatment centers
or adults who are mentally impaired.
MS. CARPENETI said she could provide the committee with an
answer by Monday.
SENATOR LYDA GREEN asked if a public record is kept on file.
MS. CARPENETI said that "public record" is defined in statute
and that she would provide the committee with a definition.
CHAIR DYSON asked Ms. Carpeneti to comment on the
appropriateness of making tampering with records a class C
felony as opposed to a high-level misdemeanor.
MS. CARPENETI said she thought the crime of tampering with
public records is already a class A misdemeanor. SB 8 will raise
the crime to a class C felony. She said she did not know if DOL
has taken a position on whether the punishment should be
increased.
CHAIR DYSON clarified that he would like Ms. Carpeneti to answer
the question of whether the existing language in either SB 8 or
SB 55 deals with a person who is receiving a state benefit but
may not be in state custody. He announced SB 8 and SB 55 would
be heard again on Monday.
There being no further business to come before the committee,
CHAIR DYSON adjourned the meeting at 1:55 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|