HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2965        FILED ON: 1/16/2015

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3454

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Timothy J. Toomey, Jr.

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to the submission and analysis of sexual assault forensic evidence.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2965        FILED ON: 1/16/2015

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3454

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Eighty-Ninth General Court
(2015-2016)

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An Act relative to the submission and analysis of sexual assault forensic evidence.

Whereas, The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to establish forthwith an expeditious review of the backlog of sexual assault evidence, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public safety.
 

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

SECTION 1. Chapter 22E of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 15 the following section:-

Section 16. (a) As used in this section, the following words shall, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, have the following meanings:-

“Crime laboratory”, a laboratory or facility that conducts forensic and DNA analysis in criminal investigations, including, but not limited, to the Boston police department crime laboratory, and a crime laboratory authorized under section 7.

“Law enforcement agency”, a municipal, county, or state law enforcement agency.

“Sexual assault evidence”, evidence collected during the physical examination of an individual after a sexual assault or rape including, but not limited to, evidence collected through use of the standardized kit for the collection and preservation of evidence in rape cases pursuant to section 97B of chapter 41, irrespective of whether the sexual assault or rape was reported to law enforcement officials.

(b) A law enforcement agency shall submit sexual assault evidence to a crime laboratory within 30 days of receiving such evidence from the hospital or other facility at which it was collected.

(c) Where sexual assault evidence includes a DNA sample, the crime laboratory that received the evidence shall conduct a DNA analysis of the sample and make the resulting DNA record available to the appropriate law enforcement agency within 180 days of submission by the law enforcement agency.             

(d) The failure of a law enforcement agency or a crime laboratory to satisfy the requirements of this section shall not be a defense to a prosecution for any crime to which a DNA sample may relate.

SECTION 2. (a) As used in this section, the following words shall, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, shall have the following meanings:-

“Crime laboratory”, a laboratory or facility that conducts forensic and DNA analysis in criminal investigations, including but not limited to the Boston police department crime laboratory, and a crime laboratory authorized under section 7 of chapter 22E of the General Laws.

“Law enforcement agency”, a municipal, county, or state law enforcement agency.

“Sexual assault evidence”, evidence collected during the physical examination of an individual after a sexual assault or rape including, but not limited to, evidence collected through use of the standardized kit for the collection and preservation of evidence in rape cases pursuant to section 97B of chapter 41 of the General Laws, irrespective of whether the sexual assault or rape was reported to law enforcement officials.

(b) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary each law enforcement agency shall submit a written notice to the secretary of public safety and security indicating the quantity of sexual assault evidence in their possession that has not been previously submitted to a crime laboratory for analysis on or before July 1, 2015.

(c) A law enforcement agency in possession of sexual assault evidence that has not previously been submitted to a crime laboratory for analysis shall ensure that such evidence is submitted to a crime laboratory within 180 days of the effective date of this act.

(d) On or before January 1, 2016, the secretary of public safety and security shall prepare and transmit a report to the governor, the attorney general, the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association, the speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the senate and the clerks of the house of representatives and senate that shall include, but not be limited to: (1) a plan and timeline for the DNA analysis of all DNA samples contained in sexual assault evidence submitted under subsection (c); (2) a summary of the inventory of DNA samples received; and (3) a request for funding and other resources necessary to implement the proposed plan and timeline for DNA analysis of that evidence.

(e) The secretary of public safety and security may promulgate rules and regulations to carry out this section.

SECTION 3.  The requirements of section 16 of chapter 22E of the General Laws shall apply to all sexual assault evidence collected fewer than 30 days prior to the effective date of this act.