Bill Text: IA HF2435 | 2017-2018 | 87th General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to domestic abuse, including provisions relating to the implementation of a domestic abuse lethality screening assessment. (Formerly HSB 653.)

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-03-14 - Subcommittee recommends amendment and passage. [HF2435 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2017-HF2435-Introduced.html

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House File 2435 - Introduced




                                 HOUSE FILE       
                                 BY  COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

                                 (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 653)

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to domestic abuse, including provisions
  2    relating to the implementation of a domestic abuse lethality
  3    screening assessment and supervised electronic tracking and
  4    monitoring.
  5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
    TLSB 5858HV (2) 87
    jm/rh

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 236.12, subsection 1, Code 2018, is
  1  2 amended by adding the following new paragraph:
  1  3    NEW PARAGRAPH.  d.  (1)  Conducting a validated,
  1  4 evidence=based domestic abuse lethality screening assessment
  1  5 with the abused person that assists peace officers, victim
  1  6 counselors, and others in identifying victims of domestic
  1  7 abuse who are most likely to be killed by such abuse in the
  1  8 future. If possible, the peace officer shall conduct the
  1  9 screening assessment verbally by asking certain screening
  1 10 assessment questions to the abused person.  If the peace
  1 11 officer is unable to conduct the screening assessment verbally
  1 12 with the abused person, the peace officer shall hand the abused
  1 13 person a document that includes the screening assessment
  1 14 questions written in English and Spanish, ask the abused
  1 15 person to read and provide written answers to the screening
  1 16 assessment questions, and request the abused person to return
  1 17 the completed document to the specified law enforcement agency
  1 18 listed in the document.
  1 19    (2)  The peace officer conducting the domestic abuse
  1 20 lethality screening assessment or the law enforcement agency
  1 21 that has received such a screening assessment shall provide the
  1 22 county attorney with the results of the assessment conducted
  1 23 pursuant to subparagraph (1).
  1 24    (3)  The Iowa county attorneys association, in cooperation
  1 25 with the Iowa state sheriffs' and deputies' association, the
  1 26 Iowa peace officers association, and the Iowa coalition against
  1 27 domestic violence, shall study and implement an established
  1 28 validated evidence=based domestic abuse lethality screening
  1 29 assessment to be used on a statewide basis.
  1 30    Sec. 2.  Section 811.2, subsection 1, paragraph a,
  1 31 unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2018, is amended to read as
  1 32 follows:
  1 33    All bailable defendants shall be ordered released from
  1 34 custody pending judgment or entry of deferred judgment on their
  1 35 personal recognizance, or upon the execution of an unsecured
  2  1 appearance bond in an amount specified by the magistrate unless
  2  2 the magistrate determines in the exercise of the magistrate's
  2  3 discretion, that such a release will not reasonably assure the
  2  4 appearance of the defendant as required or that release will
  2  5 jeopardize the personal safety of another person or persons,
  2  6 or the defendant has been charged with a violation of domestic
  2  7 abuse assault under section 708.2A and the defendant is a
  2  8 high risk to reoffend. When such determination is made, the
  2  9 magistrate shall, either in lieu of or in addition to the
  2 10 above methods of release, impose the first of the following
  2 11 conditions of release which will reasonably assure the
  2 12 appearance of the person for trial or deferral of judgment and
  2 13 the safety of other persons, or, if no single condition gives
  2 14 that assurance, any combination of the following conditions,
  2 15 except that the condition in subparagraph (03) shall be imposed
  2 16 with any combination of the following conditions if applicable
  2 17 to the person:
  2 18    Sec. 3.  Section 811.2, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2018,
  2 19 is amended by adding the following new subparagraph:
  2 20    NEW SUBPARAGRAPH.  (03)  Require the defendant to be
  2 21 supervised by an electronic tracking and monitoring system
  2 22 upon release if the defendant is charged with a violation of
  2 23 domestic abuse assault under section 708.2A and the defendant
  2 24 is a high risk to reoffend.
  2 25    Sec. 4.  Section 811.2, subsection 2, Code 2018, is amended
  2 26 to read as follows:
  2 27    2.  Determination of conditions.  In determining which
  2 28 conditions of release will reasonably assure the defendant's
  2 29 appearance and the safety of another person or persons, the
  2 30 magistrate shall, on the basis of available information, take
  2 31 into account the nature and circumstances of the offense
  2 32 charged including the results of a domestic abuse lethality
  2 33 screening assessment if available, the defendant's family
  2 34 ties, employment, financial resources, character and mental
  2 35 condition, the length of the defendant's residence in the
  3  1 community, the defendant's record of convictions, including the
  3  2 defendant's failure to pay any fine, surcharge, or court costs,
  3  3 and the defendant's record of appearance at court proceedings
  3  4 or of flight to avoid prosecution or failure to appear at court
  3  5 proceedings.
  3  6    Sec. 5.  Section 905.16, Code 2018, is amended by striking
  3  7 the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
  3  8    905.16  Domestic abuse assault == class "D" felons.
  3  9    A person who is serving a sentence under section 708.2A,
  3 10 subsection 4 or 5, and who is released on parole or work
  3 11 release, shall be supervised by an electronic tracking and
  3 12 monitoring system when the person is not confined in a secure
  3 13 area of a community=based correctional facility until such
  3 14 time as the district department determines the person may be
  3 15 supervised without the electronic tracking and monitoring
  3 16 system.
  3 17    Sec. 6.  IMPLEMENTATION OF ACT.  Section 25B.2, subsection
  3 18 3, shall not apply to this Act.
  3 19                           EXPLANATION
  3 20 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  3 21 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  3 22    This bill relates to domestic abuse lethality screening by
  3 23 peace officers.
  3 24    Currently, if a peace officer has reason to believe domestic
  3 25 abuse has occurred, the peace officer is required to use all
  3 26 reasonable means to prevent further abuse including providing a
  3 27 notice to the abused person about the person's rights pursuant
  3 28 to Code section 236.12(1).
  3 29    The bill provides that after notice is provided under Code
  3 30 section 236.12(1), the peace officer shall also conduct a
  3 31 validated, evidence=based domestic abuse lethality screening
  3 32 assessment with the abused person that assists peace officers,
  3 33 victim counselors, and others in identifying victims of
  3 34 domestic abuse who are most likely to be killed by such abuse
  3 35 in the future. If possible, the peace officer shall conduct
  4  1 the screening assessment verbally by asking certain screening
  4  2 assessment questions to the abused person.  If the peace
  4  3 officer is unable to conduct the screening assessment verbally
  4  4 with the abused person, the bill requires that the peace
  4  5 officer hand the abused person a document that includes the
  4  6 screening assessment questions written in English and Spanish,
  4  7 ask the abused person to read and provide written answers to
  4  8 the screening assessment questions, and request the abused
  4  9 person to return the completed document to the specified law
  4 10 enforcement agency listed in the document.
  4 11    The bill specifies that the peace officer conducting
  4 12 the domestic abuse lethality screening assessment or the
  4 13 law enforcement agency that has received such a screening
  4 14 assessment shall be responsible for providing the county
  4 15 attorney with the results of the screening assessment.
  4 16    The bill further specifies that the Iowa county attorneys
  4 17 association, in cooperation with the Iowa state sheriffs' and
  4 18 deputies' association, the Iowa peace officers association,
  4 19 and the Iowa coalition against domestic violence, shall study
  4 20 and implement an established validated evidence=based domestic
  4 21 abuse lethality screening assessment to be used on a statewide
  4 22 basis.
  4 23    The bill amends Code section 811.2 by prohibiting the
  4 24 release of a person on their personal recognizance, or upon the
  4 25 execution of an unsecured appearance bond, if the person is
  4 26 charged with a violation of domestic abuse assault under Code
  4 27 section 708.2A and the defendant is a high risk to reoffend.
  4 28 The bill further specifies that if a person charged with a
  4 29 violation of domestic abuse assault under Code section 708.2A
  4 30 is released, the person shall be supervised by an electronic
  4 31 tracking and monitoring system if the person has been assessed
  4 32 as a high risk to reoffend in addition to any other conditions
  4 33 specified under Code section 811.2(1)(a).
  4 34    The bill amends Code section 811.2 relating to conditions
  4 35 of release of a person after arrest.  In determining the
  5  1 conditions of release, the bill requires the court to take into
  5  2 account the results of a domestic abuse lethality screening
  5  3 assessment, if available.
  5  4    The bill requires a person who is serving a domestic
  5  5 abuse assault class "D" felony sentence under Code section
  5  6 708.2A(4) or (5), to be supervised by an electronic tracking
  5  7 and monitoring system, upon release, when the person is not
  5  8 confined in a secure area of a community=based correctional
  5  9 facility until such time as the district department determines
  5 10 the person may be supervised without the electronic tracking
  5 11 and monitoring system.
  5 12    The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
  5 13 section 25B.3.  The bill makes inapplicable Code section
  5 14 25B.2(3), which would relieve a political subdivision from
  5 15 complying with a state mandate if funding for the cost of
  5 16 the state mandate is not provided or specified.  Therefore,
  5 17 political subdivisions are required to comply with any state
  5 18 mandate included in the bill.
       LSB 5858HV (2) 87
       jm/rh