SENATE PUBLIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE BILL 645

52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2015

AN ACT

RELATING TO CRIMES; AMENDING THE SEXUAL CRIMES PROSECUTION AND TREATMENT ACT TO PROVIDE FOR ADDITIONAL RIGHTS FOR VICTIMS OF SEXUAL CRIMES; DECLARING AN EMERGENCY.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 29-11-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, Chapter 27, Section 1) is amended to read:

     "29-11-1. SHORT TITLE.--[This act] Chapter 29, Article 11 NMSA 1978 may be cited as the "Sexual Crimes Prosecution and Treatment Act"."

     SECTION 2. Section 29-11-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978, Chapter 27, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:

     "29-11-3. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Sexual Crimes Prosecution and Treatment Act:

          A. "administrator" means the director of the [mental health division of the department of health] behavioral health services division of the human services department or such person or office as the administrator may designate to act in [his] the administrator's stead;

          B. "evidence" means that evidence relating to the commission of a sexual crime;

          C. "forensic medical examination" means an examination made of a victim of a sexual crime by a health care provider for the purpose of gathering and preserving evidence of a sexual crime for use in a court proceeding;

          [C.] D. "medical and psychological treatment" includes that medical, mental or emotional treatment provided a victim of a sexual crime. In addition to the improved physical and emotional condition of a victim, the treatment should result in the improved ability of a victim to make informed and rational choices about serving as a witness in the prosecution of a suspect of a sexual crime; [and

          D.] E. "sexual crime" includes any act [which] that may be alleged to be a sexual offense or an attempted sexual offense under the provisions of Sections 30-9-10 through [30-9-16] 30-9-14.3 and 30-10-3 NMSA 1978;

          F. "sexual crime collection kit" means a human biological specimen or specimens collected by a health care provider during a forensic medical examination from the victim of a sexual crime; and

          G. "untested sexual crime collection kit" means a sexual crime collection kit that has not been submitted to the state crime laboratory or a similar qualified laboratory for either a serology or deoxyribonucleic acid test."

     SECTION 3. A new section of the Sexual Crimes Prosecution and Treatment Act is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] RIGHTS SUPPLEMENTAL TO VICTIMS OF CRIME ACT.--The rights enumerated in the Sexual Crimes Prosecution and Treatment Act shall be supplemental to the rights included in the Victims of Crime Act."

     SECTION 4. A new section of the Sexual Crimes Prosecution and Treatment Act is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] INVENTORY--REPORTING.--

          A. No later than October 31, 2015, the office of the attorney general, in consultation with representatives from a statewide coalition working to end sexual violence, shall:

                (1) establish, implement and complete a process for conducting an inventory of all sexual crime collection kits and forensic evidence;

                (2) report the results of the inventory to the New Mexico legislative council to forward to the appropriate legislative interim committee that studies courts, corrections and justice-related issues;

                (3) create standards for what evidence must be submitted to any crime laboratory in New Mexico;

                (4) create time frames for when the evidence must be submitted, analyzed and compared to DNA databases;

                (5) create victim notification and consent procedures and forms that include:

                     (a) standards for consent for the collection, testing and release of test results of the forensic medical evidence; and

                     (b) consent forms that clearly and plainly: 1) explain the potential effects of each step of the process, including collection, testing and release of test results, and require acknowledgment of consent for each step of the process; 2) give the victim the right to withdraw consent at any point in the process; 3) explain when and how results of tests may be released and for what purposes; and 4) set forth the date by which a law enforcement agency must analyze its backlog of forensic medical evidence if it does not forward such evidence to the appropriate crime laboratory;

                (6) create recommendations on how long to store untested sexual crime collection kits;

                (7) create recommendations on how to destroy untested sexual crime collection kits;

                (8) create recommendations on how to destroy sexual crime collection kits from other cases; and

                (9) create recommendations concerning any changes or clarifications to the procedures set forth in Section 30-9-19 NMSA 1978.

          B. The inventory required in Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of this section shall include a report containing:

                (1) the number of untested sexual crime collection kits in the possession of each law enforcement agency in the state; and

                (2) the date the sexual crime collection kits reported in the inventory were collected."

     SECTION 5. EMERGENCY.--It is necessary for the public peace, health and safety that this act take effect immediately.

- 5 -