Iowa-2019-SSB3184-Introduced

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ Section 1. Section 13.31, Code 2020, is amended by adding 1 the following new subsection: 2 NEW SUBSECTION . 8. Establish and administer the kit 3 tracking system established pursuant to section 915.53 for 4 tracking the location and status of sexual abuse evidence 5 collection kits. 6 Sec. 2. Section 709.10, Code 2020, is amended by striking 7 the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following: 8 709.10 Sexual abuse —— evidence. 9 1. As used in this section: 10 a. “Forensic medical examination” means a sexual abuse 11 examination by a health care provider for the purpose of 12 gathering and preserving evidence of sexual abuse. 13 b. “Kit” means a sexual abuse evidence collection kit that 14 includes a human biological specimen collected by a health care 15 provider during a forensic medical examination. 16 c. “Kit tracking system” means the automated sexual abuse 17 evidence collection kit tracking system established pursuant 18 to section 915.53. 19 d. “Laboratory” means the state criminalistics laboratory or 20 similar qualified laboratory. 21 e. “Law enforcement agency” means any governmental agency 22 that investigates persons suspected of or charged with a 23 sex abuse crime. “Law enforcement agency” also includes 24 any governmental agency that collects, stores, processes, 25 transmits, or disseminates analysis of evidence collected in 26 connection with a sexual abuse related crime. 27 2. The state criminalistics laboratory or its designee 28 shall enter information relating to new, unused kits into the 29 kit tracking system within five business days upon receipt of 30 a kit. The state criminalistics laboratory or its designee 31 shall provide a health care provider with a new, unused kit 32 upon request and shall document dissemination of each kit 33 to a health care provider in the kit tracking system within 34 forty-eight hours of dissemination to the health care provider. 35 -1- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 1/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ 3. A health care provider shall enter information relating 1 to each new kit into the kit tracking system within forty-eight 2 hours of receipt of the kit. 3 4. When a reported victim of sexual abuse consents to 4 undergo a forensic medical examination and to having the 5 evidence from the examination preserved, the health care 6 provider conducting the forensic medical examination shall 7 utilize a kit. The health care provider conducting the 8 forensic medical examination shall contact the law enforcement 9 agency under whose jurisdiction the sexual abuse offense 10 occurred within forty-eight hours after the evidence was 11 collected from a victim to notify the law enforcement agency 12 to collect and store the kit. The health care provider shall 13 document which law enforcement agency the kit is transferred 14 to in the kit tracking system within forty-eight hours of 15 collection of the evidence. 16 5. The law enforcement agency collecting the evidence 17 shall obtain the kit from a health care provider and properly 18 store the kit to ensure the chain of custody is complete and 19 sufficient. The law enforcement agency shall document receipt 20 of the kit from the health care provider in the kit tracking 21 system within forty-eight hours of obtaining the kit. 22 6. The law enforcement agency shall store the kit in a 23 clean, dry location for a minimum of fifteen years, or in the 24 case of a minor victim for a minimum of fifteen years after the 25 minor reaches the age of majority, even if the reported victim 26 of sexual abuse has not filed a criminal complaint. 27 7. Prior to the disposal of a kit by a law enforcement 28 agency, the law enforcement agency shall notify the reported 29 victim of the intended date of disposal of the kit, the 30 reason for disposal of the kit, and the options that remain 31 available for retention and analysis of the kit, if any. The 32 law enforcement agency shall obtain written approval from the 33 appropriate county attorney and retain that approval in the 34 victim’s case file prior to disposal. Any kit disposed of 35 -2- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 2/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ shall be documented by a law enforcement agency in the kit 1 tracking system within forty-eight hours of disposal. 2 8. The law enforcement agency transferring a kit to a 3 laboratory for analysis shall document the transfer of the 4 kit in the kit tracking system within forty-eight hours of 5 transferring the kit. 6 9. The laboratory shall document receipt of the kit in the 7 kit tracking system within forty-eight hours of receiving the 8 kit. 9 10. When an analysis of the evidence collected from 10 a victim’s forensic medical examination is complete, the 11 laboratory shall enter the results of the analysis into the 12 kit tracking system and return the kit to the appropriate 13 law enforcement agency. The laboratory shall document the 14 transfer of the kit in the kit tracking system to the law 15 enforcement agency within forty-eight hours of the transfer. 16 The law enforcement agency shall document receipt of the kit 17 within forty-eight hours of receipt and shall store the kit in 18 accordance with this section. 19 11. a. A health care provider shall provide a victim of 20 sexual abuse with a consent form created by the department of 21 justice prior to a forensic medical examination. The consent 22 form shall include information allowing the victim to document 23 the victim’s consent or refusal to the collection and storage 24 of the evidence collected from the victim’s forensic medical 25 examination, to release such evidence to a laboratory for 26 analysis, and to make a report to law enforcement. The consent 27 form shall also include information that the victim is not 28 required to participate in the criminal justice system; to 29 participate in an interview with law enforcement; to undergo a 30 forensic medical examination; or to allow an analysis of the 31 evidence collected; that the victim may withdraw consent for 32 the collection of the victim’s evidence or an analysis of the 33 evidence at any time; and that if the victim does not initially 34 consent to make a report to a law enforcement agency or to 35 -3- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 3/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ allow an analysis of the evidence collected, the victim may 1 choose to provide a report to a law enforcement agency or may 2 consent to an analysis of the evidence at any time within the 3 required kit retention period specified in subsection 6. 4 b. The consent form shall provide notice to the victim of 5 the victim’s statutory rights pursuant to section 709.22. 6 c. A copy of the victim’s consent form shall be maintained 7 by the health care provider in the victim’s records and in the 8 kit with the evidence collected. 9 d. A copy of the consent form shall be provided to the 10 victim. 11 e. A copy of the consent form shall accompany the health 12 care provider’s billing statement for the health care 13 provider’s exam fee submitted to the crime victim assistance 14 division of the department of justice. The health care 15 provider shall submit a copy of the consent form to the crime 16 victim assistance division of the department of justice even if 17 there are no charges associated with the health care provider’s 18 examination. 19 12. The rights of a victim pursuant to chapter 915 attach 20 when the victim consents to participate in an interview with 21 law enforcement, to a forensic medical examination, and to 22 allow an analysis of the evidence collected. 23 13. If a reported victim does not want the victim’s name 24 recorded on the kit, the kit shall be deemed an anonymous kit 25 and a case number or the number assigned to the kit by the 26 kit tracking system shall be used in place of the name of the 27 reported victim and entered into the kit tracking system by the 28 health care provider within forty-eight hours of receipt of 29 the kit. An anonymous kit shall not be submitted for analysis 30 until a victim has provided law enforcement with a criminal 31 report and has consented to an analysis of the evidence 32 collected from the victim’s forensic medical examination. 33 14. A victim who initially chooses not to participate in 34 an interview with a law enforcement agency may, at any point 35 -4- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 4/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ during the time period provided in subsection 6, contact 1 the law enforcement agency to agree to an interview with 2 the law enforcement agency and to consent to an analysis of 3 the evidence collected from the victim’s forensic medical 4 examination. 5 15. A victim who decides to participate in the investigation 6 of a reported sexual abuse or in a forensic medical examination 7 may choose to cease participation at any time and shall not 8 be compelled to continue participating in the investigation 9 or a forensic medical examination. If the analysis of the 10 evidence collected from a victim’s forensic medical examination 11 indicates a connection with another reported sexual abuse 12 offense, the victim shall not be compelled to participate in 13 the criminal or civil proceedings of the related case. 14 Sec. 3. Section 915.11, Code 2020, is amended to read as 15 follows: 16 915.11 Initial notification Notifications by law enforcement. 17 1. A local police department or county sheriff’s department 18 shall advise a victim of the right to register with the county 19 attorney, and shall provide a request-for-registration form to 20 each victim. A local police department or county sheriff’s 21 department shall provide a telephone number and internet 22 site to each victim to register with the automated victim 23 notification system established pursuant to section 915.10A . 24 2. a. If a victim of a reported sexual abuse requests 25 the results of an analysis of the evidence collected from the 26 victim’s forensic medical examination pursuant to section 27 709.10 and such analysis was completed, a local police 28 department or county sheriff’s department shall inform the 29 victim of the results, including whether the analysis produced 30 a DNA profile as defined in section 81.1 or a DNA match, either 31 to the named alleged perpetrator of the sexual abuse or to a 32 suspect already in the DNA database. 33 b. Prior to the disposal of a kit by a law enforcement 34 agency, the law enforcement agency shall notify the reported 35 -5- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 5/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ victim of the intended date of disposal of the kit, the reason 1 for disposal of the kit, and the options that remain available 2 for retention and analysis of the kit, if any. For purposes 3 of this paragraph, “kit” means the same as defined in section 4 915.53. 5 Sec. 4. Section 915.41, Code 2020, is amended to read as 6 follows: 7 915.41 Medical examination costs. 8 1. The cost of a medical examination of a victim for the 9 purpose of gathering evidence and the cost of treatment of a 10 victim for the purpose of preventing venereal disease shall be 11 paid from the fund established in section 915.94 . 12 2. If a sexual abuse evidence collection kit is collected 13 pursuant to section 709.10, payment for the health care 14 provider’s fee and the laboratory fee, if any, shall not be 15 made until the department of justice verifies that the status 16 of the sexual abuse evidence collection kit has been updated 17 by the health care provider utilizing the kit tracking system 18 established pursuant to section 915.53. 19 Sec. 5. Section 915.52, Code 2020, is amended by adding the 20 following new subsection: 21 NEW SUBSECTION . 4A. An office, agency, or department 22 may satisfy a notification obligation to registered victims 23 required by this subchapter through participation in the kit 24 tracking system established pursuant to section 915.53 to the 25 extent information is available for dissemination through 26 the kit tracking system. This section shall not relieve a 27 notification obligation under this subchapter due to the 28 unavailability of information for dissemination through the kit 29 tracking system. 30 Sec. 6. NEW SECTION . 915.53 Automated tracking system —— 31 sexual abuse evidence collection kits. 32 1. As used in this section: 33 a. “Forensic medical examination” means a sexual abuse 34 examination by a health care provider for the purpose of 35 -6- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 6/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ gathering and preserving evidence of sexual abuse. 1 b. “Kit” means a sexual abuse evidence collection kit that 2 includes a human biological specimen collected by a health care 3 provider during a forensic medical examination. 4 c. “Kit tracking system” means the automated sexual abuse 5 evidence collection kit tracking system established pursuant 6 to section 915.53. 7 d. “Laboratory” means the state criminalistics laboratory or 8 similar qualified laboratory. 9 2. The department of justice shall establish an automated 10 sexual abuse evidence collection kit tracking system within the 11 crime victim assistance division of the department of justice 12 to assist public officials in tracking and reporting the 13 location and status of sexual abuse evidence collection kits. 14 3. The kit tracking system shall have the ability to do all 15 of the following: 16 a. Track the location of a kit, including the initial 17 dissemination of a kit to a health care provider by the state 18 criminalistics laboratory or its designee, the collection of 19 evidence collected by a health care provider from a victim’s 20 forensic medical examination, the receipt and storage of the 21 kit by a law enforcement agency, the receipt and analysis of 22 the kit by a laboratory, the storage of the kit after analysis, 23 and the disposal of the kit. 24 b. Allow a health care provider performing a forensic 25 medical examination, a law enforcement agency, a county 26 attorney, a laboratory, and other entities with custody of a 27 sexual abuse evidence collection kit to update and track the 28 status and location of a kit. 29 c. Allow a victim of sexual abuse to anonymously track 30 the status and location of a kit or to receive notifications 31 regarding the status of a kit. 32 d. Utilize an internet platform allowing for continuous 33 access to the kit tracking system. 34 4. A law enforcement agency shall participate in the kit 35 -7- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 7/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ tracking system according to the implementation schedule 1 established by the department of justice. 2 5. A health care provider performing a forensic medical 3 examination shall participate in the kit tracking system 4 according to the implementation schedule established by the 5 department of justice. A health care provider shall inform the 6 victim of the number assigned to the kit. 7 6. The kit tracking system shall not contain any personally 8 identifying information about a victim of a reported sexual 9 abuse. 10 7. An office, agency, or department may satisfy a 11 notification obligation to a victim as required by section 12 915.52 through participation in the kit tracking system to 13 the extent information is available for dissemination through 14 the kit tracking system. This section shall not relieve a 15 notification obligation under this subchapter due to the 16 unavailability of information for dissemination through the kit 17 tracking system. 18 8. Information contained in the kit tracking system shall 19 not be subject to discovery in a criminal case resulting from a 20 reported sexual abuse for which a kit has been collected and 21 information about the kit is maintained in the kit tracking 22 system. 23 Sec. 7. Section 915.80, subsection 8, Code 2020, is amended 24 to read as follows: 25 8. “Survivor of a deceased victim” means a survivor 26 who , at the time of the crime, is a spouse, former spouse, 27 child, foster child, parent, legal guardian, foster parent, 28 stepparent, sibling, or foster sibling of a victim, or a person 29 cohabiting with, or otherwise related by blood or affinity 30 to, a victim, if the victim dies as a result of a crime, a 31 good-faith effort to prevent the commission of a crime, or a 32 good-faith effort to apprehend a person suspected of committing 33 a crime. 34 EXPLANATION 35 -8- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 8/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 1 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 2 This bill relates to crime victims, including the collection 3 of evidence in sexual abuse cases and the establishment of a 4 tracking system involving sexual abuse evidence collection 5 kits. 6 The bill establishes an automated sexual abuse evidence 7 collection kit tracking system within the crime victim 8 assistance division of the department of justice. The 9 purpose of the kit tracking system is to allow victims, county 10 attorneys, and entities with custody of a sexual abuse evidence 11 collection kit (kit) to track the location and status of a 12 kit. The bill requires the state criminalistics laboratory to 13 provide health care providers with kits and requires health 14 care providers conducting forensic medical examinations of 15 victims of sexual abuse to utilize the kits. The bill requires 16 health care providers, laboratories, and law enforcement 17 agencies to document the location and status of a kit within 18 a specific time period. The bill provides requirements for 19 the storage and disposal of a kit including requiring victim 20 notification prior to disposal of a kit. The bill outlines 21 consent provisions for the victim regarding the collection and 22 testing of evidence collected from a victim’s forensic medical 23 examination and participation with law enforcement. The 24 bill provides that the kit tracking system shall not contain 25 personally identifying information about a victim and provides 26 procedures for a victim wishing to remain anonymous. 27 The bill requires law enforcement to notify a victim of the 28 results of the analysis of the evidence collected from the 29 victim’s forensic medical examination if the victim requests 30 that information. Victims may anonymously track the status and 31 location of a kit or receive notifications regarding the status 32 of the kit. The bill provides that under the protective order 33 victim notification system, an office, agency, or department 34 may satisfy a notification obligation through participation in 35 -9- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 9/ 10

S.F. _____ H.F. _____ the kit tracking system. 1 The bill requires health care providers performing forensic 2 medical examinations on victims of sexual abuse to utilize the 3 kit tracking system. If evidence from a victim’s forensic 4 medical examination is collected, the bill requires health 5 care provider participation in the kit tracking system before 6 payment is made from the victim compensation fund for the 7 health care provider’s fee and the laboratory fee, if any. 8 The bill amends the definition of “survivor of a deceased 9 victim” for purposes of victim compensation to specify that a 10 survivor must have a specified status with the deceased victim 11 at the time of the crime. 12 The bill defines “kit” as a sexual abuse evidence collection 13 kit (kit) that includes a human biological specimen collected 14 by a health care provider during a forensic medical examination 15 and “kit tracking system” as the automated sexual abuse 16 evidence collection kit tracking system established in the 17 bill. The bill provides additional definitions for “forensic 18 medical examination”, “laboratory”, and “law enforcement 19 agency”. 20 -10- LSB 5374DP (7) 88 hf/rh 10/ 10