AN ACT CONCERNING THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR PROSECUTION OF CERTAIN SEXUAL ASSAULT OFFENSES USING DNA EVIDENCE.

AN ACT CONCERNING THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR PROSECUTION OF CERTAIN SEXUAL ASSAULT OFFENSES USING DNA EVIDENCE.

This bill eliminates the statutes of limitations for violations of the six most serious sexual assault crimes under certain circumstances.

The bill establishes a new crime of misrepresentation of age to entice a minor. A person commits this crime when he or she misrepresents his or her age to entice a minor in violation of the law (see BACKGROUND). Misrepresentation of age to entice a minor is a class C felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a $ 10,000 fine, or both.

The bill requires sex offenders to register their e-mail and instant message addresses and other similar Internet communication identifiers, limits the disclosure of this information, and requires the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to adopt regulations on disclosure. It requires DPS to designate a liaison between the department and electronic communication and remote computing service providers to facilitate the exchange of registered sex offender's nonpersonally identifiable Internet information.

The bill extends the Risk Assessment Board's reporting deadline, expands the information that must be included in the report, and requires the board to determine the sex offenders who should be subjected to residency restrictions.

It allows crime victims to remove restrictions, placed to protect their privacy, on access to sex offender information.

*House Amendment “A” adds the new crime and the provisions on (1) sex offenders, (2) a law enforcement liaison, (3) the Risk Assessment Board, and (4) mandated reporters.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2007, except that the provision on the Risk Assessment Board is effective upon passage and the provisions on the statute of limitations and DPS summary are effective on July 1, 2007.

This bill allows violators of the six most serious sexual assault crimes to be prosecuted at any time, rather than within 20 years after the crime, if the perpetrator is identified by DNA and the victim notified the police or a prosecutor of the offense within five years of its commission.

The provision applies to first-degree sexual assault, aggravated first-degree sexual assault, sexual assault in a spousal or cohabiting relationship, second-degree sexual assault, and third-degree sexual assault, with or without a firearm.

The bill requires sex offenders who are required to register with DPS to register their e-mail and instant message addresses and any other similar Internet communication identifiers in the same way that they register their names, identifying factors, criminal history records, and residential addresses.

By law, anyone convicted or found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect of a criminal offense against a minor, nonviolent sexual offense, sexually violent offense, or felony committed for a sexual purpose must register with DPS within three days of his release into the community. He must go to a location designated by the DPS commissioner and register, on forms the commissioner has developed, his name, identifying factors, criminal history record, and residential address. Offenders convicted of a sexually violent offense must also document any treatment they received for mental abnormalities or personality disorders.

If the registrant moves, he or she must register the new address with the commissioner, in writing, without undue delay. Under the bill, the registrant must follow the same procedure for changes in e-mail and instant message addresses.

The bill requires courts, the Department of Correction, and the Psychiatric Security Review Board to submit to the DPS Commissioner the e-mail and instant message addresses and any other similar Internet communication identifier of sex offenders who are released from custody without conditions and who refuse to submit their own registration. The court and agencies must submit the information in the same manner that they currently submit offenders' names, identifying factors, criminal history records, and residential addresses.

The court and these agencies must also inform offenders of their duties to update this information, including the duty to report if they establish or change any of these Internet communication identifiers.

The bill specifies that sex offender registrants' e-mail and instant message addresses and any other similar Internet communication identifiers are not public records. However, DPS may release them for law enforcement or security purposes in accordance with regulations. The bill requires DPS to adopt regulations that specify when the information may be disclosed, to whom, and the procedure for doing so. Electronic communication and remote computing service providers and Internet web site operators must be included among potential recipients (see BACKGROUND).

By law, the court may restrict the disclosure of certain sexual offender registration information to protect victims' identities. Beginning July 1, 2007, any court that exercises this discretion must provide DPS with a summary of the crime the offender committed and DPS must place the summary on the Internet. The bill permits crime victims to petition the court at any time to remove the restrictions. It also shifts the responsibility to provide DPS with the summary from the court to the prosecutor for the district where the offense was committed.

The bill requires the DPS commissioner to designate a sworn police officer to serve as a liaison between the department and electronic communication and remote computing service providers to facilitate the exchange of registrants' nonpersonally identifiable information. “Electronic communication service” and “remote computing service” have the same meaning as they do under the federal law on wire and electronic communications, as amended from time to time (see BACKGROUND).

Whenever the liaison learns from this exchanged information that sex offenders are subscribers, customers, or users of the providers, he must initiate a criminal investigation to determine if their status as such violates a registration requirement or the terms and conditions of their parole or probation.

The liaison may request a judge to issue an ex parte order compelling a provider to disclose a sex offender's name; address; age or date of birth; e-mail address, instant message address, or other similar Internet communication identifier; and subscriber number or identity, including any assigned Internet protocol address (i. e. , basic subscriber information). The judge must grant the order if the liaison offers specific and articulable facts that constitute reasonable grounds for believing the basic subscriber information is relevant and material to the ongoing criminal investigation.

The order must state the investigation's case number, the name of the judge issuing the order, and the date and time of issuance. The judge must sign the order within 48 hours of its issuance or the next business day, whichever is earlier.

The provider must disclose the information to the liaison pursuant to the order. A provider that discloses the information in good faith pursuant to an order has the same protection he has under federal law (18 USC § 3124) as amended from time to time. This means the provider cannot be sued for the disclosure and may use his or her good faith reliance on the court order as a complete defense against any civil or criminal action.

By law, the Risk Assessment Board must develop a risk assessment scale and use it to assign a risk level of high, medium, or low to each registered sex offender based on his or her likelihood to reoffend. It must also submit a report to the Judiciary Committee on its findings and recommendations on (1) the sex offenders who should appear on the Internet and the detailed information that should accompany the posting and (2) the need for additional restrictions on this population, including civil commitment.

The bill requires the board to use the risk assessment scale to determine the sex offenders who should be prohibited from residing within 1,000 feet of the property comprising an elementary or secondary school or a licensed center- or home-based child day care facility.

It extends, from February 1, 2007 to October 1, 2007, the deadline for the board to submit its report. It expands the information the board must include in the report by requiring recommendations on whether a person found guilty of an offense in another state that would require registration in this state must register in Connecticut if final judgment was never entered in the other state.

The bill adds people who service or repair personal computers to the list of mandated child abuse reporters. A mandated reporter must report to the Department of Children and Families (DCF) when, acting in his or her professional capacity, he or she has reasonable cause to suspect that a child under age 18 has been abused, neglected, or is at risk of abuse or neglect.

A person is guilty of enticing a minor when he or she uses interactive computer services to knowingly persuade or entice a victim under age 16 to engage in prostitution or other sexual activity which would subject the actor to criminal prosecution.

“Electronic communication service” means any service which provides to users the ability to send or receive wire or electronic communications. “Electronic communication” means any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectronic or photooptical system that affects interstate or foreign commerce. It does not include (1) any wire or oral communication, (2) any communication made through a tone-only paging device, (3) any communication from a tracking device, or (4) electronic funds transfer information stored by a financial institution in a communications system used for the electronic storage and transfer of funds (18 USC § 2710).

“Remote computing service” means the provision to the public of computer storage or processing services by an electronic communications system (18 USC § 2711).

A court may restrict dissemination of sex offender information to law enforcement purposes only if the offender is convicted or found not guilty by reason of mental defect or disease of certain sexual assault crimes and the court finds dissemination (1) is not required for public safety and (2) would likely reveal the victim's identity within his or her community. The court's discretion applies in cases of sexual assault between close relatives and sexual assault in spousal or cohabitating relationships.

Beginning July 1, 2007, the law requires the court to give DPS a written summary that specifically describes each offense and the age and sex of the crime victim. The department must add the summary to the sex offender registry information available to the public on the Internet.

In addition to the report to the Judiciary Committee, the 18-member board must develop a risk assessment scale and use it to assign a risk level of high, medium, or low to each sex offender required to register, based on his likelihood to reoffend.

The board consists of a forensic psychiatrist experienced in sex offender treatment appointed by the governor; a person trained in the identification, assessment, and treatment of sex offenders appointed by the governor; and the following state officials or their designees:

1. correction, mental health and addiction services, and public safety commissioners;

2. chief state's attorney;

3. chief public defender;

4. chairperson of the Board of Pardons and Parole;

5. victim advocate;

6. executive director of the Judicial Department's Court Support Services Division; and

7. chairpersons and ranking members of the Judiciary and Public Safety committees.

1. licensed physicians and surgeons, medical residents, physician assistants, dentists, and dental hygienists;

2. registered nurses and licensed practical nurses;

3. medical examiners, pharmacists, physical therapists, optometrists, chiropractors, and podiatrists;

4. psychologists, social workers, and licensed marital and family therapists;

5. school teachers, principals, guidance counselors, and paraprofessionals;

6. police officers;

7. clergy;

8. mental health professionals and licensed substance abuse counselors;

9. sexual assault and battered women's counselors;

10. child care providers in licensed facilities; and

11. DCF employees, the Child Advocate, Office of Child Advocate employees, and Department of Public Health employees who license child care centers and camps.

Yea

Nay

(04/12/2007)