Legislature(2019 - 2020)BUTROVICH 205

02/11/2020 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS

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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
*+ SB 166 AUTHORITY OF PRETRIAL SERVICES OFFICERS TELECONFERENCED
Heard & Held
*+ SB 167 AGGRAVATING FACTOR: CORRECTIONS OFFICER TELECONFERENCED
Heard & Held
*+ SB 162 FORM OF NAME ON DRIVER'S LICENSE/ID TELECONFERENCED
Heard & Held
-- Public Testimony --
**Streamed live on AKL.tv**
         SB 166-AUTHORITY OF PRETRIAL SERVICES OFFICERS                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
3:33:25 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR REVAK announced  the consideration of SENATE  BILL NO. 166,                                                               
"An Act amending  the authority of pretrial  services officers to                                                               
file charges, make a warrantless  arrest, or request the court to                                                               
issue a  warrant for arrest for  escape in the third  degree; and                                                               
providing for an effective date."                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
He invited Ms. Winkelman to present the bill.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
3:34:21 PM                                                                                                                    
JENNIFER  WINKELMAN, Acting  Deputy  Commissioner, Department  of                                                               
Corrections, Juneau,  Alaska, introduced SB 166  reading from the                                                               
following prepared statement:                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     Good afternoon  Mr. Chairman and members  of the Senate                                                                    
     State  Affairs Committee.  For the  record, my  name is                                                                    
     Jennifer Winkelman, Acting  Deputy Commissioner for the                                                                    
     Department of Corrections.                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     Here   with  me   today  are   Kelly  Howell,   Special                                                                    
     Assistant/Legislative  Liaison  for the  Department  of                                                                    
     Corrections, who  will provide a sectional  analysis of                                                                    
     the  bill,  and   Kaci  Schroeder,  Assistant  Attorney                                                                    
     General with  the Department of  Law, who  is available                                                                    
     to  answer  any  legal questions  associated  with  the                                                                    
     bill.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
     Thank  you for  the  opportunity to  appear before  you                                                                    
     today  to introduce  Senate Bill  166, an  Act amending                                                                    
     the  authority of  pretrial services  officers to  file                                                                    
     charges,  make a  warrantless  arrest,  or request  the                                                                    
     court to issue  a warrant for arrest for  escape in the                                                                    
     third degree, and providing for an effective date.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
     Under current law, pretrial  services officers may only                                                                    
     arrest,  file criminal  charges, or  request a  warrant                                                                    
     when a person violates  a condition of pretrial release                                                                    
     under  AS 11.56.757  or  fails to  appear  for a  court                                                                    
     hearing under AS 11.56.730.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
     Under  HB 49  one commits  the crime  of escape  in the                                                                    
     third degree  if, while on release  the person removes,                                                                    
     tampers   with,  or   disables  electronic   monitoring                                                                    
     equipment or  without prior authorization  leaves one's                                                                    
     residence  or  other  place designated  by  a  judicial                                                                    
     officer as a condition of release.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
     Because pretrial  officers are  unable to  arrest, file                                                                    
     charges,  or request  warrants for  this offense,  they                                                                    
     must notify  law enforcement or  a prosecutor  who must                                                                    
     then gather the information  from the pretrial services                                                                    
     officer in order to file charges or request a warrant.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
     Aside  from violations  of  conditions  of release  and                                                                    
     failure  to  appear,  pretrial  officers  do  not  have                                                                    
     arrest  authority  for   Title  11  offenses.  Pretrial                                                                    
     services  officers  draw  their arrest  authority  from                                                                    
     Title 33.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
     By amending  Title 33, Senate Bill  166 grants pretrial                                                                    
     services officers the authority  to affect an arrest on                                                                    
     an  individual they  are  responsible for  supervising.                                                                    
     This will  streamline the  criminal justice  process in                                                                    
     regard to these cases.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
     We appreciate  the opportunity  to present  Senate Bill                                                                    
     166 today and request  your prompt and favorable action                                                                    
     on this bill.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
     Thank you.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
3:36:41 PM                                                                                                                    
KELLY HOWELL, Special Assistant and Legislative Liaison,                                                                        
Department of Corrections, Juneau, Alaska, read the following                                                                   
sectional analysis for SB 166.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
     Section  1: Amends  AS  33.07.030,  duties of  pretrial                                                                    
     officers.    Current    subsection   (g)    establishes                                                                    
     discretionary actions  that may be taken  by a pretrial                                                                    
     services  officer including  establishing circumstances                                                                    
     when a pretrial services officer  may make an arrest or                                                                    
     request the  court to issue  a warrant.  This amendment                                                                    
     would add escape in the  third degree (AS 11.56.320) as                                                                    
     an offense that permits  a pretrial services officer to                                                                    
     file  a  complaint with  the  court  seeking arrest  or                                                                    
     issuance of a warrant.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
     Section 2: Establishes an immediate effective date.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MS. HOWELL noted that two zero fiscal notes are attached to the                                                                 
legislation.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:37:37 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR COGHILL asked for an explanation of AS 11.56.320.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN replied it is escape in the third degree.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR KAWASAKI asked for a description of escape in the third                                                                 
degree.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN read the statute:                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     Sec. 11.56.320. Escape in the third degree.                                                                              
     (a)  One  commits the  crime  of  escape in  the  third                                                                    
     degree if one                                                                                                              
          (1) removes oneself from official detention                                                                           
     during  any lawful  movement  or  activity incident  to                                                                    
     confinement  within  a   correctional  facility  for  a                                                                    
     misdemeanor;                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
         (2) violates AS 11.56.335 or 11.56.340 and leaves                                                                    
     or attempts to leave the state;                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
          (3) while under official detention for a                                                                              
     misdemeanor,                                                                                                               
               (A) removes, tampers with, or disables the                                                                       
     electronic monitoring equipment; or                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
               (B) without prior authorization, leaves                                                                          
     one's  residence  or  other  place  designated  by  the                                                                    
     commissioner  of  corrections  or the  commissioner  of                                                                    
     health and  social services  for service  by electronic                                                                    
     monitoring; or                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
3:39:20 PM                                                                                                                    
MS.  WINKELMAN  explained  that  subsection  (a)(4)  relating  to                                                               
electronic monitoring is  the important provision for  SB 166. AS                                                               
12.30 relates to release while on pretrial service supervision.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
          (4) while on release under AS 12.30,                                                                                
               (A) removes, tampers with, or disables the                                                                       
     electronic monitoring equipment; or                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
               (B) without prior authorization, leaves                                                                          
         one's residence or other place designated by a                                                                         
     judicial officer as a condition of release.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR KAWASAKI  asked her  to read the  last citation  under AS                                                               
12.30.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN  read, "without  prior authorization,  leaves one's                                                               
residence or  other place designated  by a judicial officer  as a                                                               
condition of release."                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR KAWASAKI  posed a hypothetical  situation of a  person at                                                               
NorthStar Center  in Fairbanks  who is on  work release  but does                                                               
not  return to  the center  after work.  He asked  if that  would                                                               
qualify.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN  clarified that the provision  was specifically for                                                               
individuals who  are placed on  pretrial services as  a condition                                                               
of bail. She  deferred to Ms. Schroeder to discuss  escape from a                                                               
halfway house.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR COGHILL asked what the most common problems have been.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN  replied SB  166 will  streamline the  process when                                                               
somebody tampers with or  deactivates their electronic monitoring                                                               
device. Should the bill pass,  the pretrial service officer would                                                               
make an arrest  for violating conditions of release  and then put                                                               
the paperwork forward  for the Court System to  review. Under the                                                               
current  process,  the  pretrial   service  officer  arrests  the                                                               
individual  for   violating  conditions  of  release   and  flags                                                               
sentences in  the complaint that  state what the behavior  was so                                                               
the prosecutor  can screen  for escape in  the third  degree. She                                                               
reminded the  members that House  Bill 49 made tampering  with or                                                               
deactivating an electronic monitoring  device the crime of escape                                                               
in  the third  degree  but pretrial  service  officers only  have                                                               
arresting authority for violating conditions of release.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
3:42:04 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR COGHILL  commented that the  assumption must be  that the                                                               
individual is already under supervision,  which is why the arrest                                                               
may be  warrantless. "If  this goes  into law,  it would  be much                                                               
easier because of the assumption of their conditions?"                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN  replied it is  not necessarily because  the arrest                                                               
may be warrantless. The pretrial  service officer will still file                                                               
the complaint for violating conditions  of release. It is because                                                               
of the threshold of escape in  the third degree and the fact that                                                               
the  officers do  not have  that arresting  authority. Currently,                                                               
officers arrest  for violating conditions  of release  and either                                                               
the  prosecution  or  local  law   enforcement  must  screen  the                                                               
complaint  for  escape  in  the   third  degree,  which  adds  an                                                               
additional step.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR COGHILL said it is that  HB 49 increased the penalty so a                                                               
warrant is required.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MS.  WINKELMAN  explained  that  HB 49  made  tampering  with  or                                                               
deactivating   an  electronic   monitoring  device   while  under                                                               
pretrial release a crime of escape in the third degree.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR REVAK asked how often and in what regions this occurs.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MS. WINKELMAN replied that a  quick poll of three locations since                                                               
House  Bill 49  became effective  showed there  were 13  cases in                                                               
Juneau and  Fairbanks and 23  cases in Anchorage.  By comparison,                                                               
there were  about 33  of these  cases in  Anchorage the  6 months                                                               
prior to the effective date.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:44:38 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR REVAK  opened public testimony  on SB 166.  Finding none,                                                               
he closed  public testimony  saying he would  open it  again when                                                               
the bill  was scheduled in the  future. He noted that  SB 166 has                                                               
two zero fiscal notes.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
SB 166 was held in committee for future consideration.                                                                          
                                                                                                                                

Document Name Date/Time Subjects
SB 166 Sponsor Statement 1.24.2020.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 166
SB 166 Sectional Analysis v. A 2.5.2020.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 166
SB 167 Sponsor Statement 1.24.2020.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 167
SB 167 Sectional Analysis v. A 2.5.2020.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 167
SB 162 Legal Memo 11.27.19.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 162
SB 162 Legal Memo 1.22.20.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 162
SB 162 Sponsor Statement 2.7.20.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 162
SB 162 Backup statute docs.pdf SSTA 2/11/2020 3:30:00 PM
SB 162