Bill Text: IA SF2345 | 2023-2024 | 90th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: A bill for an act concerning judicial branch administration, including mental health advocates, access to and confidentiality of juror information, remote testimony, and access to criminal history records.(Formerly SF 472, SSB 1120.)
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-03-18 - Withdrawn. S.J. 555. [SF2345 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2023-SF2345-Introduced.html
Senate
File
2345
-
Introduced
SENATE
FILE
2345
BY
COMMITTEE
ON
JUDICIARY
(SUCCESSOR
TO
SF
472)
(SUCCESSOR
TO
SSB
1120)
(COMPANION
TO
HF
2247
BY
COMMITTEE
ON
JUDICIARY)
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
concerning
judicial
branch
administration,
including
1
mental
health
advocates,
access
to
and
confidentiality
of
2
juror
information,
remote
testimony,
and
access
to
criminal
3
history
records.
4
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
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DIVISION
I
1
PATIENT
ADVOCATES
2
Section
1.
Section
229.19,
subsection
1,
paragraph
d,
3
subparagraph
(7),
Code
2024,
is
amended
to
read
as
follows:
4
(7)
To
utilize
the
related
best
practices
for
the
duties
5
identified
in
this
paragraph
“d”
developed
and
promulgated
by
6
the
judicial
council
.
7
DIVISION
II
8
JURORS
——
INFORMATION
9
Sec.
2.
NEW
SECTION
.
607A.48
Public
access
to
juror
10
information.
11
1.
Public
access
to
juror
and
prospective
juror
information
12
shall
be
limited.
Information
on
the
year
of
birth
and
address
13
information
identifying
the
city
and
zip
code
of
prospective
14
jurors
shall
be
available
to
the
public.
However,
more
15
specific
address
information,
phone
numbers,
and
the
date
and
16
month
of
birth
of
prospective
jurors
are
confidential
and
not
17
subject
to
disclosure
without
an
order
of
the
court.
18
2.
Notwithstanding
subsection
1,
attorneys
representing
19
parties
to
the
case
are
entitled
to
the
complete
juror
20
questionnaires
of
jurors
and
prospective
jurors
without
order
21
of
the
court.
22
DIVISION
III
23
REMOTE
TESTIMONY
24
Sec.
3.
Section
624.1,
subsection
1,
Code
2024,
is
amended
25
to
read
as
follows:
26
1.
All
issues
of
fact
in
ordinary
actions
shall
be
tried
27
upon
oral
evidence
taken
in
open
court,
except
that
depositions
28
may
be
used
as
provided
by
law.
“Open
court”
includes
remote
29
testimony
of
a
witness
by
telephone,
videoconference,
or
other
30
remote
means
of
communication
approved
by
the
court.
31
DIVISION
IV
32
ACCESS
TO
CRIMINAL
HISTORY
RECORDS
33
Sec.
4.
Section
692.2,
subsection
5,
Code
2024,
is
amended
34
to
read
as
follows:
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5.
A
person
other
than
the
department
of
public
safety
1
shall
not
disseminate
criminal
history
data
maintained
by
the
2
department
to
persons
who
are
not
criminal
or
juvenile
justice
3
agencies
,
except
as
set
forth
in
section
692.3
.
4
Sec.
5.
Section
692.3,
subsection
3,
Code
2024,
is
amended
5
to
read
as
follows:
6
3.
The
information
described
in
this
section
subsections
7
1
and
2
may
be
redisseminated
through
any
written,
audio,
or
8
visual
means
utilized
by
a
criminal
or
juvenile
justice
agency.
9
Sec.
6.
Section
692.3,
Code
2024,
is
amended
by
adding
the
10
following
new
subsections:
11
NEW
SUBSECTION
.
4.
A
person
may
disseminate
criminal
12
history
data
of
an
accused
to
the
attorney
of
the
accused
and
13
to
self-represented
litigants
in
a
pending
criminal
matter
14
in
district
or
juvenile
court,
if
the
criminal
history
data
15
is
already
part
of
the
prosecution’s
file
and
subject
to
a
16
discovery
obligation.
17
NEW
SUBSECTION
.
5.
Upon
order
of
the
court,
a
person
may
18
disseminate
criminal
history
data
of
an
accused
that
is
not
19
already
part
of
the
prosecution’s
file,
or
criminal
history
20
data
of
a
witness,
to
the
attorney
of
the
accused,
prosecutors,
21
and
to
self-represented
litigants
in
a
pending
criminal
matter
22
in
district
or
juvenile
court.
23
EXPLANATION
24
The
inclusion
of
this
explanation
does
not
constitute
agreement
with
25
the
explanation’s
substance
by
the
members
of
the
general
assembly.
26
This
bill
relates
to
judicial
branch
administration.
27
PATIENT
ADVOCATES.
The
bill
removes
the
requirement
that
28
the
judicial
council
develop
and
promulgate
best
practices
for
29
court-assigned
advocates
of
persons
with
mental
illness.
Under
30
the
bill,
such
advocates
may
use
any
best
practices
for
their
31
duties.
32
JURORS
——
INFORMATION.
The
bill
provides
that
prospective
33
juror
year
of
birth
and
city
and
zip
code
address
information
34
is
available
to
the
public
but
that
more
specific
address
35
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information,
phone
numbers,
and
date
and
month
of
birth
are
1
confidential
and
are
not
subject
to
disclosure
without
an
order
2
of
the
court.
Attorneys
representing
parties
to
the
case
3
are
entitled
to
complete
juror
questionnaires
of
jurors
and
4
prospective
jurors
without
court
order.
5
REMOTE
TESTIMONY.
For
purposes
of
oral
evidence
in
court
6
trials,
the
bill
defines
the
term
“open
court”
to
include
7
remote
testimony
of
a
witness
by
telephone,
videoconference,
or
8
other
remote
means
approved
by
the
court.
9
Under
current
law,
all
testimony
needs
to
be
taken
in
open
10
court,
except
for
depositions.
In
the
supreme
court
of
Iowa’s
11
decision
in
In
re
Estate
of
Rutter,
633
N.W.2d
740
(Iowa
2001),
12
the
court
held
the
phrase
“in
open
court”
meant
physical
13
presence
in
the
courtroom
itself,
and
ruled
that
allowing
14
telephonic
testimony
over
objection
violated
the
statute.
15
ACCESS
TO
CRIMINAL
HISTORY
RECORDS.
The
bill
allows
16
criminal
history
data
of
an
accused
person
to
be
disseminated
17
to
the
attorney
of
the
accused
and
self-represented
litigants
18
without
a
court
order,
if
the
criminal
history
data
is
already
19
a
part
of
the
prosecution’s
file
and
is
subject
to
a
discovery
20
obligation.
The
bill
also
allows
criminal
history
data
of
an
21
accused
person,
or
of
a
witness,
to
be
disseminated
to
the
22
attorney
of
the
accused,
prosecutors,
and
self-represented
23
litigants
upon
court
order.
24
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