Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

Section 5 of chapter 19C of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following two paragraphs:-

Upon receipt of a report of abuse of a disabled person, or upon receipt of a written determination and evaluation prepared and forwarded to the commission pursuant to the provisions of this section, the commission, notwithstanding any provisions of chapter sixty-six A regarding personal data to the contrary, shall immediately report such conditions and forward said investigation and evaluation report, together with any other material or information which the commission has obtained or received and which is relevant to the alleged abuse, to the district attorney for the county in which the abuse is alleged to have occurred if there is reasonable cause to believe that any of the following conditions exist: (a) a disabled person has been sexually abused or raped, or assaulted or battered, as set forth in chapter two hundred and sixty-five; (b) a disabled person has suffered brain injury, loss or substantial impairment of a bodily function or organ, or substantial disfigurement; or (c) a disabled person has suffered serious bodily injury as a result of a pattern of repetitive actions or inactions by a caretaker.

No person providing notification or information to a district attorney or providing testimony in court pursuant to the provisions of this section, shall be liable in any civil or criminal action by reason of such action.