AN ACT RELATIVE TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Whereas, the deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose which is to establish forthwith certain provisions against domestic violence, 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 6 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 116A, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
Section 116A. (a) The municipal police training committee shall establish, within the recruit basic training curriculum, a course for regional and municipal police training schools for the training of law enforcement officers in the commonwealth in the handling of domestic violence and sexual violence complaints and also shall develop guidelines for law enforcement response to domestic violence and sexual violence. The course of instruction and the guidelines shall stress enforcement of criminal laws in domestic violence and sexual violence situations, availability of civil remedies and community resources and protection of the victim. The course of instruction and guidelines shall also include specific training on adolescent development, trauma and family dynamics. As appropriate, the training presenters shall include domestic violence and sexual violence experts with expertise in the delivery of direct services to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence, including utilizing the staff of community based domestic violence, rape and sexual assault service providers and survivors of domestic violence, rape or sexual assault in the presentation of the training.
As used in this section, “law enforcement officer” shall mean any officer of a local police department, the office of environmental law enforcement, the University of Massachusetts and state police. As used in this section, “victim” shall mean any child or adult victim of such abuse, including elder victims.
(b) The course of basic training for law enforcement officers shall include at least 8 hours of instruction in the following procedures and techniques:
(1) the procedures and responsibilities set forth in chapter 209A relating to response to, and enforcement of, court orders, including violations of orders issued pursuant to said chapter 209A;
(2) the service of said chapter 209A complaints and orders;
(3) verification and enforcement of temporary restraining and vacate orders when the suspect is present or the suspect has fled;
(4) the legal duties imposed upon law enforcement officers to offer protection and assistance, including guidelines for making felony and misdemeanor arrests, and for mandatory reporting of child and elder abuse cases and cases involving individuals with disabilities;
(5) techniques for handling domestic violence and sexual violence incidents that minimize the likelihood of injury to the law enforcement officer;
(6) techniques for handling domestic violence and sexual violence incidents that promote the safety of the victim, including the importance of keeping the victim informed as to the whereabouts of the suspect and other such information helpful for victim safety planning;
(7) the nature and extent of domestic violence and sexual violence, including the physiological and psychological effects of the pattern of domestic violence and sexual violence on victims, including children who witness such abuse;
(8) the increased vulnerability of victims who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, low-income, minority or immigrant, including training on ways in which the indicators of dangerousness in these communities may be different from those in non-marginalized communities;
(9) the dynamics of coercive controlling behavior that increases dangerousness even when such patterns of behavior are not themselves violent;
(10) the legal rights and the remedies available to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence;
(11) documentation, report writing and evidence collection, which shall include methods for assessing the degree of risk of homicide involved in situations of domestic violence, including, but not limited to, gathering information from the victim regarding the suspect’s past reported and non-reported behavior and dangerousness, such as: (i) whether the suspect has ever used a weapon against the victim or threatened the victim with a weapon; (ii) whether the suspect owns a gun; (iii) whether the suspect’s physical violence against the victim has increased in severity or frequency; (iv) whether the suspect has threatened to kill the victim; (v) whether the suspect has ever threatened or attempted suicide; (vi) whether the suspect has used or threatened physical violence against the victim’s family, other household members or pets; (vii) whether the suspect uses illegal drugs; (viii) whether the suspect abuses alcohol; and (ix) whether there have been specific instances of strangulation or suffocation of the victim by the suspect;
(12) tenancy and custody issues, including those of married and unmarried couples;
(13) the impact of law enforcement intervention on children in domestic violence and sexual violence situations;
(14) the services and facilities available to victims of abuse, including the victim's compensation programs, emergency shelters and legal advocacy programs; and
(15) techniques for increasing cooperation and immediate data sharing among different areas of law enforcement in combating domestic violence and sexual violence.
(c) All law enforcement recruits shall receive the course of basic training for law enforcement officers, established in subsections (a) and (b), as part of their required certification process.
(d) The course of basic training for law enforcement officers shall be taught as part of the crisis intervention and conflict resolution components of the recruit academy training. Such training shall not increase in the currently required 480 hours of recruit training curriculum.
(e) The course of instruction, the learning and performance objectives, the standards for training and the guidelines shall be developed by the municipal police training committee in consultation with appropriate groups and individuals having an interest and expertise in the fields of domestic violence and sexual violence.
(f) The municipal police training committee shall, subject to appropriation, periodically include within its in-service training curriculum a course of instruction on handling domestic violence and sexual violence complaints consistent with paragraphs (1) to (15), inclusive, of subsection (b).
SECTION 2. Section 167 of said chapter 6, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “non-convictions”, in line 5, the following words:- , previous and pending hearings conducted pursuant to section 58A of chapter 276, including requests of such hearings, transfers by the court, disposition of such requests, findings and orders, regardless of the determination,.
SECTION 3. Said section 167 of said chapter 6, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “proceedings”, in line 23, the following words:- , previous hearings conducted pursuant to section 58A of chapter 276 where the defendant was detained prior to trial or released with conditions under subsection (2) of section 58A of chapter 276,.
SECTION 4. Chapter 6A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 18M the following section:-
Section 18N. (a) As used in this subsection, the following words shall have the following meanings:-
“Domestic violence”, the abuse of a family or household member, as defined in section 1 of chapter 209A.
“Fatality”, any death resulting from an incident of domestic violence or attempted domestic violence, including the death of an individual who was not a family or household member of the perpetrator’s.
“Local review team”, a local domestic violence fatality review team established pursuant to subsection (c).
“State review team”, the state domestic violence fatality review team established pursuant to subsection (b).
“Team”, either the local review team or the state review team.
(b) There shall be a state domestic violence fatality review team within the executive office of public safety and security. Members of the state review team shall be subject to criminal offender record checks to be conducted by the colonel of the state police. All members shall serve without compensation for their duties associated with membership on the state team. All members shall be immune from any liability resulting from the execution of their duties.
The state review team shall consist of the following members: the secretary of public safety or a designee employed by the executive office of public safety and security who shall serve as chair; the attorney general or a designee employed by the office of the attorney general; the chief medical examiner or a designee employed by the office of the chief medical examiner; a member selected by the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association; the colonel of the state police or a designee employed by the department of state police; the commissioner of probation or a designee employed by the office of probation; the chief justice of the trial court or a designee; the chief justice of the family and probate court or a designee; and 1 member selected by the Massachusetts office of victim assistance, who shall be employed by the office.
The purpose of the state team shall be to decrease the incidence of domestic violence fatalities by: (i) developing an understanding of the causes and incidence of domestic violence fatalities and domestic violence murder-suicides and the circumstances surrounding them; and (ii) advising the governor and the general court by recommending changes in law, policy and practice designed to prevent domestic violence fatalities. The state review team, in conjunction with any local review teams, shall develop a report to be sent to the clerks of the house and senate, the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities, the joint committee on public safety and homeland security, and the joint committee on the judiciary. The report shall be issued not later than December 31 of each year.
To achieve its purpose, the state review team shall: (1) develop model investigative and data collection protocols for local review teams; (2) annually review incidents of fatalities within the commonwealth and assign at least 3 reviews, selected at random, to a local review team for investigation and report; provided, that no review shall be assigned unless it is approved by a majority vote of the state review team and all criminal proceedings, including appeals, related to the fatality are complete; (3) provide information to local review teams, law enforcement agencies and domestic violence service providers for the purpose of protecting victims of domestic violence; (4) provide training and written materials to local review teams to assist them in carrying out their duties; (5) review reports from local review teams; (6) analyze community, public and private agency involvement with victims and perpetrators of domestic violence and their families prior to and subsequent to fatalities; (7) develop a protocol for the collection of data regarding fatalities and provide training to local review teams on the protocol, which shall include protocol and training on the issues of confidentiality of records, victims’ identities and any personally identifying data; (8) develop and implement rules and procedures necessary for its own operation and the operation of local review teams, which shall include the use of confidentiality agreements for both the state and local review teams; and (9) provide the governor and the general court with annual written reports, subject to any applicable confidentiality restrictions, which shall include, but not be limited to, the state team's findings and recommendations
(c) If the state team selects a case for review, a local team shall be assembled to participate in the review. Members of a local review team shall be subject to criminal offender record checks to be conducted by the district attorney of the district. All members shall serve without compensation. All members shall be immune from any liability resulting from the execution of their duties.
Each local review team shall be chaired by the local district attorney and shall be comprised of at least the following members, who shall be appointed by the district attorney and who shall reside or work within the district: a medical examiner or pathologist; a chief of police; a probation officer; a member with experience providing non-profit legal services to victims of domestic violence; a member with experience in the delivery of direct services to victims of domestic violence; and any other person with expertise or information relevant to an individual case who may attend meetings on an ad hoc basis, including, but not limited to, local or state law enforcement officers, local providers of social services, providers of community based domestic violence, rape and sexual assault shelter and support services, hospital representatives, medical specialists or subspecialists, teachers, family or friends of a victim and persons recommended by the state review team.
The purpose of each local review team shall be to decrease the incidence of preventable domestic violence fatalities by: (i) coordinating the collection of information on fatalities assigned to it for review; (ii) promoting cooperation and coordination between agencies responding to fatalities and providing services to victims or victims’ family members; (iii) developing an understanding of the causes and incidence of domestic violence fatalities within its area; and (iv) advising the state review team on changes in law, policy or practice which may affect domestic violence fatalities.
To achieve its purpose, each local review team shall, subject to assignment by the state review team: (1) review, establish and implement model protocols from the state review team; (2) execute a confidentiality agreement; (3) review individual fatalities using the established protocol; (4) recommend methods of improving coordination of services between agencies and service providers in its area; (5) collect, maintain and provide confidential data as required by the state review team; and (6) provide law enforcement or other agencies with information for the purposes of the protection of victims of domestic violence and for the accountability of perpetrators.
(d) At the request of the local district attorney, the local review team shall be immediately provided with: (1) information and records relevant to the cause of the fatality, including those of the perpetrator or any other party involved with the fatality maintained by providers of medical or other care, treatment or services, including dental and mental health and behavioral care; (2) information and records relevant to the cause of the fatality or any party involved with the fatality maintained by any state, county or local government agency including, but not limited to, birth certificates, medical examiner investigative data, incident reports, parole and probation records and law enforcement’s data post-disposition; provided, that certain law enforcement records may be exempted by the local district attorney; (3) information and records of any provider of social services, including the department of children and families and non-profit agencies, related to the victim or victim’s family or any party involved with the fatality, including the perpetrator, that the local team deems relevant to the review; and (4) demographic information relevant to the victim and the victim’s immediate family or any party involved with the fatality, including, but not limited to, address, age, race, country of origin, gender and economic status. The district attorney may enforce this subsection by seeking an order of the superior court.
(e) Any privilege or restriction on disclosure established pursuant to chapter 66A, section 70 of chapter 111, section 11 of chapter 111B, section 18 of 111E, chapter 112, chapter 123 or sections 20B, 20J, 20K or 20M of chapter 233 or any other law relating to confidential communications which would otherwise be held by the victim of a fatality or protect records and information directly related to such victim shall not prohibit the disclosure of such records or information, as it directly relates to that victim, to the chair of the state review team or a local review team. Any privilege or restriction on disclosure pursuant to the aforementioned statutes, or any other law relating to confidential communications not directly related to the victim of a fatality shall remain in effect; provided, however, that such privilege or restriction may be waived, in writing, by the person holding it, for the limited purposes of disclosure to the state review team or a local review team. Any information considered confidential pursuant to the aforementioned statutes received by the chair of the state review team or a local review team may be submitted for a team's review upon the determination of that team's chair that the review of the information is necessary. The chair shall ensure that no information submitted for a team's review is disseminated to parties outside the team. Under no circumstances shall any member of a team violate the confidentiality provisions set forth in the aforementioned statutes.
Except as necessary to carry out a team's purpose and duties, members of a team and persons attending a team meeting shall not disclose any information relating to the team's business.
Team meetings shall be closed to the public. Information and records acquired by a team pursuant to this section shall be confidential, shall not be considered public records, as defined in clause twenty-sixth of section 7 of chapter 4, shall be exempt from disclosure pursuant to chapter 66 and may only be disclosed as necessary to carry out a team's duties and purposes . All such records shall be maintained by the chair of the team.
Statistical compilations of data which do not contain any information that would permit the identification of any person may be disclosed to the public.
(f) Members of a team, persons attending a team meeting and persons who present information to a team may not be questioned in any civil or criminal proceeding regarding information presented in or opinions formed as a result of a team meeting.
(g) Information, documents and records of a team shall not be subject to subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence in any civil or criminal proceeding; provided, however, that information, documents and records otherwise available from any other source shall not be immune from subpoena, discovery or introduction into evidence through these sources solely because they were presented during proceedings of a team or are maintained by a team.
SECTION 5. Chapter 12 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-
Section 33. The Massachusetts District Attorneys’ Association shall provide training on the issue of domestic violence and sexual violence in the commonwealth, at least once biannually, to all district attorneys and assistant district attorneys. Such training shall include, but not be limited to, the dissemination of information concerning:
(1) misdemeanor and felony offenses in which domestic violence and sexual violence are often involved;
(2) the civil rights and remedies available to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence;
(3) methods for assessing the degree of risk of homicide involved in situations of domestic violence including, but not limited to, gathering information from the victim regarding the suspect’s past reported and non-reported behavior and dangerousness, such as: (i) whether the suspect has ever used a weapon against the victim or threatened the victim with a weapon; (ii) whether the suspect owns a gun; (iii) whether the suspect’s physical violence against the victim has increased in severity or frequency; (iv) whether the suspect has threatened to kill the victim; (v) whether the suspect has ever threatened or attempted suicide; (vi) whether the suspect has used or threatened physical violence against the victim’s family, other household members or pets; (vii) whether the suspect uses illegal drugs; (viii) whether the suspect abuses alcohol; and (ix) whether there have been specific instances of strangulation or suffocation of the victim by the suspect;
(4) law enforcement techniques, information sharing and methods of promoting cooperation among different areas of law enforcement in combating domestic violence and sexual violence, including the importance of keeping victims informed as to the whereabouts of suspected abusers and other such information helpful for victim safety planning;
(5) the physiological and psychological effects of the pattern of domestic violence and sexual violence on its victims, including children who witness such abuse;
(6) the increased vulnerability of victims who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, low-income, minority or immigrant, and including training on ways in which the indicators of dangerousness in these communities may be different from those in non-marginalized communities;
(7) the dynamics of coercive controlling behavior that increases dangerousness even when such patterns of behavior are not themselves violent;
(8) the underlying psychological and sociological causes of domestic violence and sexual violence and the availability of batterer’s intervention programs;
(9) the availability of community based domestic violence, rape, and sexual assault shelter and support services within the commonwealth, including, to the extent practicable, specific shelter and support services available in a district attorney’s district; and
(10) techniques for increasing cooperation and immediate data sharing among different areas of law enforcement and the court system in combating domestic violence and sexual violence.
The Massachusetts District Attorneys’ Association may appoint such expert, clerical and other staff members as the operation of the training program may require. As appropriate, the training presenters shall include domestic violence and sexual violence experts with expertise in the delivery of direct services to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence, including utilizing community based domestic violence, rape and sexual assault service providers and survivors of domestic violence, rape or sexual assault in the presentation of the training.
SECTION 6. Chapter 17 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-
Section 20. There shall be established and placed within the department of public health a fund to be known as the Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Victim Assistance Fund, in this section referred to as the fund, to support innovative practices to prevent domestic and sexual violence and provide assistance to victims of domestic violence in the commonwealth. The fund shall be credited any appropriations, bond proceeds or other monies authorized by the general court, which may properly be applied in furtherance of the objectives of the fund, domestic and sexual violence prevention and victim assistance assessments, as specified in section 8 of chapter 258B, and any other monies which may be available for the purposes of the fund from any other source or sources. Any revenues, deposits, receipts or funds received shall be deposited in the fund and shall be available for the purposes described in this section, without further appropriation. Money remaining in the fund at the end of the year shall not revert to the General Fund.
The fund shall be under the control of the department of public health and not subject to appropriation. The fund shall be used for innovative practices, which shall include, but not be limited to: (i) community-based domestic and sexual violence prevention and assistance programs and service providers; (ii) multi-disciplinary teams addressing victims of domestic and sexual violence at high risk of homicide or fatality; and (iii) other programs and service providers that support victims of domestic and sexual violence.
SECTION 7. Chapter 41 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 97D, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
Section 97D. All reports of rape and sexual assault or attempts to commit such offenses, all reports of abuse perpetrated by family or household members, as defined in section 1 of chapter 209A, and all communications between police officers and victims of such offenses or abuse shall not be public reports and shall be maintained by the police departments in a manner that shall assure their confidentiality; provided, however, that all such reports shall be accessible at all reasonable times, upon written request, to: (i) the victim, the victim’s attorney, others specifically authorized by the victim to obtain such information, prosecutors and (ii) victim-witness advocates as defined in section 1 of chapter 258B, domestic violence victims’ counselors as defined in section 20K of chapter 233, sexual assault counselors as defined in section 20J of chapter 233, if such access is necessary in the performance of their duties; and provided further, that all such reports shall be accessible at all reasonable times, upon written, telephonic, facsimile or electronic mail request to law enforcement officers, district attorneys or assistant district attorneys and all persons authorized to admit persons to bail pursuant to section 57 of chapter 276. Communications between police officers and victims of said offenses and abuse may also be shared with the forgoing named persons if such access is necessary in the performance of their duties. A violation of this section shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than 1 year or by a fine of not more than $1,000, or both such fine and imprisonment.
SECTION 8. Said chapter 41 is hereby further amended by striking out section 98F, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
Section 98F. Each police department and each college or university to which officers have been appointed pursuant to section 63 of chapter 22C shall make, keep and maintain a daily log, written in a form that can be easily understood, recording, in chronological order, all responses to valid complaints received, crimes reported, the names, addresses of persons arrested and the charges against such persons arrested. All entries in said daily logs shall, unless otherwise provided in law, be public records available without charge to the public during regular business hours and at all other reasonable times; provided, however, that the following entries shall be kept in a separate log and shall not be a public record nor shall such entry be disclosed to the public, or any individual not specified in section 97D: (i) any entry in a log which pertains to a handicapped individual who is physically or mentally incapacitated to the degree that said person is confined to a wheelchair or is bedridden or requires the use of a device designed to provide said person with mobility, (ii) any information concerning responses to reports of domestic violence, rape or sexual assault or (iii) any entry concerning the arrest of a person for assault, assault and battery or violation of a protective order where the victim is a family or household member, as defined in section 1 of chapter 209A.
SECTION 9. Chapter 112 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-
Section 264. The board of registration in medicine, the board of registration in nursing, the board of registration of physician assistants, the board of nursing home administrators, the board of registration of social workers, the board of registration of psychologists and the board of registration of allied mental health and human services professions shall develop and administer standards for licensure, registration or certification pursuant to this chapter, as applicable, and any renewal thereof, that require training and education on the issue of domestic violence and sexual violence, including, but not limited to, the common physiological and psychological symptoms of domestic violence and sexual violence, the physiological and psychological effects of domestic violence and sexual violence on victims, including children who witness such abuse, the challenges of domestic violence and sexual violence victims who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, low-income, minority, immigrant or non-English speaking , availability of rape and sexual assault shelter and support services within the commonwealth. Training shall also address the pathology of offenders including, but not limited to, identifying the system of abusive behaviors used to maintain control, the intentionality of the violence, the tendency to minimize abuse and blame the victim and the risk to the victim created by joint counseling. Each board may work with community-based domestic violence, rape and sexual assault service providers and certified batterer’s intervention programs in order to develop the standards required by this section. Each board shall: (i) promulgate rules and regulations establishing the standards required by this section; and (ii) identify programs or courses of study which meet these standards and the promulgated rules or regulations. Each board shall provide a list of the identified programs or courses of study to an applicant for licensure, registration or certification, or renewal thereof.
SECTION 10. Chapter 149 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 52D the following section:-
Section 52E. (a) For purposes of this section, the following words shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
“Abuse”, (i) attempting to cause or causing physical harm; (ii) placing another in fear of imminent serious physical harm; (iii) causing another to engage involuntarily in sexual relations by force, threat or duress or engaging or threatening to engage in sexual activity with a dependent child; (iv) engaging in mental abuse, which includes threats, intimidation or acts designed to induce terror; (v) depriving another of medical care, housing, food or other necessities of life; or (vi) restraining the liberty of another.
“Abusive behavior”, (i) any behavior constituting domestic violence, (ii) stalking in violation of section 43 of chapter 265, (iii) sexual assault, which shall include a violation of sections 13B, 13B½, 13B¾, 13F, 13H, 22, 22A, 22B, 22C, 23, 23A, 23B, 24, 24B, 26D, 50 or 51 of chapter 265 or sections 3 or 35A of chapter 272 and (iv) kidnapping in violation of the third paragraph of section 26 of chapter 265.
“Domestic violence”, abuse against an employee or the employee’s family member by: (i) a current or former spouse of the employee or the employee’s family member; (ii) a person with whom the employee or the employee’s family member shares a child in common; (iii) a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the employee or the employee’s family member; (iv) a person who is related by blood or marriage to the employee; or (v) a person with whom the employee or employee’s family member has or had a dating or engagement relationship.
“Employees”, individuals who perform services for and under the control and direction of an employer for wages or other remuneration.
“Family member”, (i) persons who are married to one another; (ii) persons in a substantive dating or engagement relationship and who reside together; (iii) persons having a child in common regardless of whether they have ever married or resided together; (iv) a parent, step-parent, child, step-child, sibling, grandparent or grandchild; or (v) persons in a guardianship relationship.
(b) An employer shall permit an employee to take up to 15 days of leave from work in any 12 month period if:
(i) the employee, or a family member of the employee, is a victim of abusive behavior;
(ii) the employee is using the leave from work to: seek or obtain medical attention, counseling, victim services or legal assistance; secure housing; obtain a protective order from a court; appear in court or before a grand jury; meet with a district attorney or other law enforcement official; or attend child custody proceedings or address other issues directly related to the abusive behavior against the employee or family member of the employee; and
(iii) the employee is not the perpetrator of the abusive behavior against such employee’s family member.
The employer shall have sole discretion to determine whether any leave taken under this section shall be paid or unpaid.
(c) This section shall apply to employers who employ 50 or more employees.
(d) Except in cases of imminent danger to the health or safety of an employee, an employee seeking leave from work under this section shall provide appropriate advance notice of the leave to the employer as required by the employer's leave policy.
If there is a threat of imminent danger to the health or safety of an employee or the employee’s family member, the employee shall not be required to provide advanced notice of leave; provided, however, that the employee shall notify the employer within 3 workdays that the leave was taken or is being taken under this section. Such notification may be communicated to the employer by the employee, a family member of the employee or the employee’s counselor, social worker, health care worker, member of the clergy, shelter worker, legal advocate or other professional who has assisted the employee in addressing the effects of the abusive behavior on the employee or the employee’s family member.
If an unscheduled absence occurs, an employer shall not take any negative action against the employee if the employee, within 30 days from the unauthorized absence or within 30 days from the last unauthorized absence in the instance of consecutive days of unauthorized absences, provides any of the documentation described in paragraphs (1) to (7), inclusive, of subsection (e).
(e) An employer may require an employee to provide documentation evidencing that the employee or employee’s family member has been a victim of abusive behavior and that the leave taken is consistent with the conditions of clauses (i) to (iii), inclusive, of subsection (b); provided, however, that an employer shall not require an employee to show evidence of an arrest, conviction or other law enforcement documentation for such abusive behavior. An employee shall provide such documentation to the employer within a reasonable period after the employer requests documentation relative to the employee’s absence. An employee shall satisfy this documentation requirement by providing any 1 of the following documents to the employer.
(1) A protective order, order of equitable relief or other documentation issued by a court of competent jurisdiction as a result of abusive behavior against the employee or employee’s family member.
(2) A document under the letterhead of the court, provider or public agency which the employee attended for the purposes of acquiring assistance as it relates to the abusive behavior against the employee or the employee’s family member.
(3) A police report or statement of a victim or witness provided to police, including a police incident report, documenting the abusive behavior complained of by the employee or the employee’s family member.
(4) Documentation that the perpetrator of the abusive behavior against the employee or family member of the employee has: admitted to sufficient facts to support a finding of guilt of abusive behavior; or has been convicted of, or has been adjudicated a juvenile delinquent by reason of, any offense constituting abusive behavior and which is related to the abusive behavior that necessitated the leave under this section.
(5) Medical documentation of treatment as a result of the abusive behavior complained of by the employee or employee’s family member.
(6) A sworn statement, signed under the penalties of perjury, provided by a counselor, social worker, health care worker, member of the clergy, shelter worker, legal advocate or other professional who has assisted the employee or the employee’s family member in addressing the effects of the abusive behavior.
(7) A sworn statement, signed under the penalties of perjury, from the employee attesting that the employee has been the victim of abusive behavior or is the family member of a victim of abusive behavior. Any documentation provided to an employer under this section may be maintained by the employer in the employee’s employment record but only for as long as required for the employer to make a determination as to whether the employee is eligible for leave under this section.
(f) All information related to the employee's leave under this section shall be kept confidential by the employer and shall not be disclosed, except to the extent that disclosure is:
(i) requested or consented to, in writing, by the employee;
(ii) ordered to be released by a court of competent jurisdiction;
(iii) otherwise required by applicable federal or state law;
(iv) required in the course of an investigation authorized by law enforcement, including, but not limited to, an investigation by the attorney general; or
(v) necessary to protect the safety of the employee or others employed at the workplace.
(g) An employee seeking leave under this section shall exhaust all annual or vacation leave, personal leave and sick leave available to the employee, prior to requesting or taking leave under this section, unless the employer waives this requirement.
(h) No employer shall coerce, interfere with, restrain or deny the exercise of, or any attempt to exercise, any rights provided under this section or to make leave requested or taken hereunder contingent upon whether or not the victim maintains contact with the alleged abuser.
(i) No employer shall discharge or in any other manner discriminate against an employee for exercising the employee’s rights under this section. The taking of leave under this section shall not result in the loss of any employment benefit accrued prior to the date on which the leave taken under this section commenced. Upon the employee’s return from such leave, the employee shall be entitled to restoration to the employee’s original job or to an equivalent position.
(j) The attorney general shall enforce this section and may seek injunctive relief or other equitable relief to enforce this section.
(k) Employers with 50 or more employees shall notify each employee of the rights and responsibilities provided by this section including those related to notification requirements and confidentiality.
(l) This section shall not be construed to exempt an employer from complying with chapter 258B, section 14B of chapter 268 or any other general or special law or to limit the rights of any employee under said chapter 258B, said section 14B of chapter 268 or any other general or special law.
(m) Any benefit received from this section shall not be considered relevant in any criminal or civil proceeding as it relates to the alleged abuse unless, after a hearing, a justice of the district, superior or probate court determines that such benefit is relevant to the allegations.
SECTION 11. Section 150 of said chapter 149, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the figure “33E”, in line 20, the following figure:- , 52E.
SECTION 12. Section 3 of chapter 209A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 149, the word “except” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- including.
SECTION 13. Said section 3 of said chapter 209A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “support”, in line 149, the following words:- ; provided, however, that upon issuing an order for custody or support, the superior, district or Boston municipal court shall provide a copy of the order to the probate and family court department of the trial court that issued the prior or pending custody or support order immediately; provided further, that such order for custody or support shall be for a fixed period of time, not to exceed 30 days; and provided further, that such order may be superseded by a subsequent custody or support order issued by the probate and family court department, which shall retain final jurisdiction over any custody or support order. This section shall not be interpreted to mean that superior, district or Boston municipal court judges are prohibited or discouraged from ordering all other necessary relief or issuing the custody and support provisions of orders pursuant to this chapter for the full duration permitted under subsection (c).
SECTION 14. The second paragraph of section 7 of said chapter 209A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting, after the first sentence the following sentence:- Law enforcement agencies shall establish adequate procedures to ensure that, when effecting service upon a defendant pursuant to this paragraph, a law enforcement officer shall, to the extent practicable: (i) fully inform the defendant of the contents of the order and the available penalties for any violation of an order or terms thereof and (ii) provide the defendant with informational resources, including, but not limited to, a list of certified batterer intervention programs, substance abuse counseling, alcohol abuse counseling and financial counseling programs located within or near the court’s jurisdiction.
SECTION 15. Said section 7 of said chapter 209A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “order”, in line 50, the following words:- , or as a condition of a continuance without a finding.
SECTION 16. Subsection (a) of section 3 of chapter 209C of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- No court shall make an order providing visitation rights to a parent who was convicted of rape, under sections 22 to 23B, inclusive, of chapter 265 or section 2, 3, 4 or 17 of chapter 272, and is seeking to obtain visitation with the child who was conceived during the commission of that rape, unless the judge determines that such child is of suitable age to signify the child’s assent and the child assents to such order and that assent is in the best interest of the child; provided, however, that a court may make an order providing visitation rights to a parent convicted of rape under section 23 of said chapter 265, if (i) visitation is in the best interest of the child and (ii) either the other parent of the child conceived during the commission of that rape has reached the age of 18 and said parent consents to such visitation or the judge makes an independent determination that visitation is in the best interest of the child .
SECTION 17. The first paragraph of subsection (e) of section 10 of said chapter 209C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- For the purposes of this section, if the child was conceived during the commission of a rape and the parent was convicted of said rape, under sections 22 to 23B, inclusive, of chapter 265 or section 2, 3, 4 or 17 of chapter 272, said conviction shall be conclusive evidence of a serious incident of abuse by the convicted parent.
SECTION 18. Chapter 211B of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 9A the following section:-
Section 9B. The chief justice of the trial court department shall provide training on the issue of domestic violence and sexual violence in the commonwealth, at least once biannually, to all appropriate court personnel of the municipal, district, probate and family, juvenile and superior courts throughout the commonwealth, including but not limited to judges, clerks of court, probation officers, court officers, security officers and guardians ad litem. Such training shall include, but not be limited to, the dissemination of information concerning:
(1) misdemeanor and felony offenses in which domestic violence and sexual violence are often involved;
(2) the civil rights and remedies available to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence;
(3) methods for assessing the degree of risk of homicide involved in situations of domestic violence, including, but not limited to, gathering information from the victim regarding the suspect’s past reported and non-reported behavior and dangerousness, such as : (i) whether the suspect has ever used a weapon against the victim or threatened the victim with a weapon, (ii) whether the suspect owns a gun; (iii) whether the suspect’s physical violence against the victim has increased in severity or frequency; (iv) whether the suspect has threatened to kill the victim; (v) whether the suspect has ever threatened or attempted suicide; (vi) whether the suspect has used or threatened physical violence against the victim’s family, other household members or pets; (vii) whether the suspect uses illegal drugs; (viii) whether the suspect abuses alcohol; and (ix) whether there have been specific instances of strangulation or suffocation of the victim by the suspect;
(4) law enforcement techniques, information sharing and methods of promoting cooperation among the various court departments in combating domestic violence and sexual violence, including the importance of keeping victims informed as to the whereabouts of suspected abusers and other such information helpful for victim safety planning;
(5) the physiological and psychological effects of the pattern of domestic violence and sexual violence on its victims, including children, who witness such abuse;
(6) the increased vulnerability of victims who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, low-income, minority or immigrant, and including training on ways in which the indicators of dangerousness in these communities may be different from those in non-marginalized communities;
(7) the dynamics of coercive controlling behavior that increases dangerousness even when such patterns of behavior are not themselves violent;
(8) the underlying psychological and sociological causes of domestic violence and sexual violence and the availability of batterer’s intervention programs;
(9) the availability of community based domestic violence, rape and sexual assault shelter and support services within the commonwealth, including, to the extent practicable, specific shelter and support services available in a court’s geographical area; and
(10) techniques for increasing cooperation and immediate data sharing among different areas of law enforcement and the court system in combating domestic violence and sexual violence.
The chief justice of the trial court may appoint such expert, clerical and other staff members as the operation of the training program may require. As appropriate, the training presenters shall include domestic violence and sexual violence experts with expertise in the delivery of direct services to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence, including utilizing community based domestic violence, rape and sexual assault service providers and survivors of domestic violence, rape or sexual assault in the presentation of the training.
SECTION 19. Section 26 of chapter 218 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 18, the words “fifteen A and twenty-one A” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- 15A, 15D, 21A and 26 .
SECTION 20. The first paragraph of section 8 of chapter 258B of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the third sentence the following sentence:- The court shall impose an additional domestic violence prevention and victim assistance assessment of $50 for: (i) any violation of an order issued pursuant to sections 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, sections 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C; (ii) a conviction or adjudication for an act which would constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of chapter 209A; or (iii) a violation of section 13M or 15D of chapter 265, which shall be deposited in the Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Victim Assistance Fund, established in section 20 of chapter 17.
SECTION 21. Said section 8 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out the seventh sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:-
If it is determined by a written finding of fact that an assessment, other than for a civil motor vehicle infraction imposed by this section would impose a severe financial hardship upon the person against whom the assessment is imposed, the court may waive the fee or structure a payment plan in order to ensure compliance with payment; provided, however, that the court may order a person required to pay a domestic violence prevention and victim assistance assessment to complete at least 8 hours of community service in order to satisfy such assessment, if a structured payment would continue to impose a severe financial hardship.
SECTION 22. Said section 8 of said chapter 258B, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “assessment”, in line 50, the following words:- and the domestic violence prevention and victim assistance assessment .
SECTION 23. Chapter 265 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 13M, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
Section 13M. (a) Whoever commits an assault or assault and battery on a family or household member shall be punished by imprisonment in the house of correction for not more than 2 ½ years or by a fine of not more than $5,000, or both such fine and imprisonment.
(b) Whoever is convicted of a second or subsequent offense of assault or assault and battery on a family or household member shall be punished by imprisonment in the house of correction for not more than 2 ½ years or by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than 5 years.
(c) For the purposes of this section, “family or household member” shall mean persons who (i) are or were married to one another, (ii) have a child in common regardless of whether they have ever married or lived together or (iii) are or have been in a substantive dating or engagement relationship; provided, that the trier of fact shall determine whether a relationship is substantive by considering the following factors: the length of time of the relationship; the type of relationship; the frequency of interaction between the parties; whether the relationship was terminated by either person; and the length of time elapsed since the termination of the relationship.
(d) For any violation of this section, or as a condition of a continuance without a finding, the court shall order the defendant to complete a certified batterer’s intervention program unless, upon good cause shown, the court issues specific written findings describing the reasons that batterer’s intervention should not be ordered or unless the batterer’s intervention program determines that the defendant is not suitable for intervention.
SECTION 24. Said chapter 265 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 15C the following section:-
Section 15D. (a) For the purposes of this section the following words shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Serious bodily injury", bodily injury that results in a permanent disfigurement, loss or impairment of a bodily function, limb or organ or creates a substantial risk of death.
"Strangulation", the intentional interference of the normal breathing or circulation of blood by applying substantial pressure on the throat or neck of another.
"Suffocation", the intentional interference of the normal breathing or circulation of blood by blocking the nose or mouth of another.
(b) Whoever strangles or suffocates another person shall be punished by imprisonment in state prison for not more than 5 years or in the house of correction for not more than 2 ½ years, or by a fine of not more than $5,000, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(c) Whoever: (i) strangles or suffocates another person and by such strangulation or suffocation causes serious bodily injury; (ii) strangles or suffocates another person, who is pregnant at the time of such strangulation or suffocation, knowing or having reason to know that the person is pregnant; (iii) is convicted of strangling or suffocating another person after having been previously convicted of the crime of strangling or suffocating another person under this section, or of a like offense in another state or the United States or a military, territorial or Indian tribal authority; or (iv) strangles or suffocates another person, with knowledge that the individual has an outstanding temporary or permanent vacate, restraining or no contact order or judgment issued under sections 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, sections 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A or sections 15 or 20 of chapter 209C , in effect against such person at the time the offense is committed, shall be punished by imprisonment in state prison for not more than 10 years, or in the house of correction for not more than 2½ years, and by a fine of not more than $10,000.
(d) For any violation of this section, or as a condition of a continuance without a finding, the court shall order the defendant to complete a certified batterer’s intervention program unless, upon good cause shown, the court issues specific written findings describing the reasons that batterer’s intervention should not be ordered or unless the batterer’s intervention program determines that the defendant is not suitable for intervention.
SECTION 25. Section 20D of chapter 276 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “governor”, in line 8, the following words:- ; provided, however, that if such person is arrested for a crime committed in the commonwealth, any bail by bond or undertaking shall be assessed pursuant to sections 42, 42A, 57, 58 and 58A.
SECTION 26. Section 42 of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word ‘trial’, in line 6, the following words:- ; provided, however, that if a person is arrested for a violation of an order issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C or any act that would constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of chapter 209A, or a violation of sections 13M or 15D of chapter 265, any bail shall be assessed pursuant sections 42A, 57, 58 and 58A.
SECTION 27. Section 42A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “of”, in line 7, the following words:- bail or.
SECTION 28. Said section 42A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the first paragraph the following 3 paragraphs:-
Except where prohibited by section 57, for any violation of an order issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C or any act that would constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A, or a violation of sections 13M or 15D of chapter 265, a person arrested, who has attained the age of 18 years, shall not be admitted to bail sooner than 6 hours after arrest, except by a judge in open court. Any person authorized to take bail for such violation under this section may impose conditions on a person’s release in order to ensure the appearance of the person before the court and the safety of the alleged victim, any other individual or the community; provided, however, that the person authorized to take bail shall prior to admitting the person to bail, modifying an existing order of bail or imposing such conditions, have immediate access to all pending and prior criminal offender record information, board of probation records and police and incident reports related to the person detained, upon oral, telephonic, facsimile or electronic mail request, to the extent practicable, and shall take into consideration the following: the nature and circumstances of the offense charged, the potential penalty the person faces, the person’s family ties, employment record and history of mental illness, the person’s reputation, the risk that the person will obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice or threaten, injure or intimidate or attempt to threaten, injure or intimidate a prospective witness or juror, the person’s record of convictions, if any, any illegal drug distribution or present drug dependency, whether the person is on bail pending adjudication of a prior charge, whether the acts alleged involve abuse, as defined in said section 1 of said chapter 209A, a violation of a temporary or permanent order issued pursuant to said sections 18 or 34B of said chapter 208, said section 32 of said chapter 209, said sections 3, 4 or 5 of said chapter 209A or said sections 15 or 20 of said chapter 209C, whether the person has any history of issuance of such orders pursuant to the aforesaid sections, whether the person is on probation, parole or other release pending completion of sentence for any conviction and whether the person is on release pending sentence or appeal for any conviction.
The person shall, prior to admittance to bail, with or without conditions, be provided with informational resources related to domestic violence by the person admitting the arrestee to bail, which shall include, but not be limited to, a list of certified batterer intervention programs located within or near the court’s jurisdiction. If the defendant is released on bail from the place of detention, a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the victim of the defendant’s release by the arresting police department. If the defendant is released on bail by order of a court, a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the victim of the defendant’s release by the district attorney.
The commonwealth shall be the only party permitted to move for arraignment, within 3 hours of a complaint being signed by a magistrate or a magistrate’s designee, for a person charged with violation of said sections 18 or 34B of said chapter 208, said section 32 of chapter 209, said sections 3, 4 or 5 of said chapter 209A or said sections 15 or 20 of said chapter 209C or was a violation of said sections 13M or 15D of said chapter 265.
SECTION 29. Section 55 of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “felony”, in line 5, the following words:- , or is a violation of an order issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C, a violation of sections 13M or 15D of chapter 265 or would otherwise constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A.
SECTION 30. Said chapter 276 is hereby further amended by inserting after section 56 the following section:-
Section 56A. Before a judge of the superior court, district court or Boston municipal court releases, discharges or admits to bail any person arrested and charged with a crime against the person or property of another, the judicial officer shall inquire of the commonwealth as to whether abuse, as defined in section 1 of chapter 209A, is alleged to have occurred immediately prior to or in conjunction with the crime for which the person was arrested and charged. The commonwealth shall file a preliminary written statement if it is alleged that abuse has so occurred. The judicial officer shall make a written ruling that abuse is alleged in connection with the charged offense. Such preliminary written statement shall be maintained within the statewide domestic violence record keeping system. Such preliminary written statement shall not be considered criminal offender record information or public records and shall not be open for public inspection. Such preliminary written statement shall not be admissible in any investigation or proceeding before a grand jury or court of the commonwealth related to the crime for which the person was brought before the court.
If the defendant has been found not guilty by the court or jury, or a no bill has been returned by the grand jury or a finding of no probable cause has been made by the court, the court shall remove the preliminary written statement from the statewide domestic violence record keeping system; provided however, that a dismissal shall not be eligible for removal from the statewide domestic record keeping system.
Nothing in this section shall be construed as modifying or limiting the presumption of innocence.
SECTION 31. Section 57 of said chapter 276, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the first paragraph the following 3 paragraphs:-
Except where prohibited by this section, for any violation of an order issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C or any act that would constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A, or a violation of sections 13M or 15D of chapter 265, a person arrested, who has attained the age of 18 years, shall not be admitted to bail sooner than 6 hours after arrest, except by a judge in open court. Any person authorized to take bail for such violation may impose conditions on a person’s release in order to ensure the appearance of the person before the court and the safety of the alleged victim, any other individual or the community; provided, however, that the person authorized to take bail shall, prior to admitting the person to bail, modifying an existing order of bail or imposing such conditions, have immediate access to all pending and prior criminal offender record information, board of probation records and police and incident reports related to the person detained, upon oral, telephonic, facsimile or electronic mail request, to the extent practicable, and shall take into consideration the following: the nature and circumstances of the offense charged, the potential penalty the person faces, the person’s family ties, employment record and history of mental illness, the person’s reputation, the risk that the person will obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice or threaten, injure or intimidate or attempt to threaten, injure or intimidate a prospective witness or juror, the person’s record of convictions, if any, any illegal drug distribution or present drug dependency, whether the person is on bail pending adjudication of a prior charge, whether the acts alleged involve abuse, as defined in said section 1 of said chapter 209A, a violation of a temporary or permanent order issued pursuant to said sections 18 or 34B of said chapter 208, said section 32 of said chapter 209, said sections 3, 4 or 5 of said chapter 209A or said sections 15 or 20 of said chapter 209C, whether the person has any history of issuance of such orders pursuant to the aforesaid sections, whether the person is on probation, parole or other release pending completion of sentence for any conviction and whether the person is on release pending sentence or appeal for any conviction.
The person shall, prior to admittance to bail, with or without conditions, be provided with informational resources related to domestic violence by the person admitting the arrestee to bail, which shall include, but not be limited to, a list of certified batterer intervention programs located within or near the court’s jurisdiction. If the defendant is released on bail from the place of detention, a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the victim of the defendant’s release by the arresting police department. If the defendant is released on bail by order of a court, a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the victim of the defendant’s release by the district attorney.
The commonwealth shall be the only party permitted to move for arraignment, within 3 hours of a complaint being signed by a magistrate or a magistrate’s designee, for a person charged with violation of said sections 18 or 34B of said chapter 208, said section 32 of chapter 209, said sections 3, 4 or 5 of said chapter 209A or said sections 15 or 20 of said chapter 209C or was a violation of said sections 13M or 15D of said chapter 265.
SECTION 32. Section 58 of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the first paragraph the following 3 paragraphs:-
Except where prohibited by section 57, for any violation of an order issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C or any act that would constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A, or a violation of sections 13M or 15D of chapter 265, a person arrested, who has attained the age of 18 years, shall not be admitted to bail sooner than 6 hours after arrest, except by a judge in open court. Any person authorized to take bail for such violation may impose conditions on a person’s release in order to ensure the appearance of the person before the court and the safety of the alleged victim, any other individual or the community; provided, however, that the person authorized to take bail shall, prior to admitting the person to bail, modifying an existing order of bail or imposing such conditions, have immediate access to all pending and prior criminal offender record information, board of probation records and police and incident reports related to the person detained, upon oral, telephonic, facsimile or electronic mail request, to the extent practicable.
The person shall, prior to admittance to bail, with or without conditions, be provided with informational resources related to domestic violence by the person admitting the arrestee to bail, which shall include, but is not limited to, a list of certified batterer intervention programs located within or near the court’s jurisdiction. If the defendant is released on bail from the place of detention, a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the victim of the defendant’s release by the arresting police department. If the defendant is released on bail by order of a court, a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the victim of the defendant’s release by the district attorney.
The commonwealth shall be the only party permitted to move for arraignment, within 3 hours of a complaint being signed by a magistrate or a magistrate’s designee, for a person charged with violation of said sections 18 or 34B of said chapter 208, said section 32 of chapter 209, said sections 3, 4 or 5 of said chapter 209A or said sections 15 or 20 of said chapter 209C or was a violation of said sections 13M or 15D of said chapter 265.
SECTION 33. Section 58A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 92, the word “ninety” and inserting in place thereof the following figure:- 120.
SECTION 34. The second paragraph of subsection (4) of said section 58A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the fifth sentence the following sentence:- Prior to the summons of an alleged victim, or a member of the alleged victim’s family, to appear as a witness at the hearing, the person shall demonstrate to the court a good faith basis for the person’s reasonable belief that the testimony from the witness will be material and relevant to support a conclusion that there are conditions of release that will reasonably assure the safety of any other person or the community.
SECTION 35. Said section 58A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “hearing”, in line 115, the following words:- and the judge shall consider hearsay contained in a police report or the statement of an alleged victim or witness.
SECTION 36. The second paragraph of subsection (4) of said section 58A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the last sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- The hearing may be reopened by the judge, at any time before trial, or upon a motion of the commonwealth or the person detained if the judge finds that: (i) information exists that was not known at the time of the hearing or that there has been a change in circumstances and (ii) that such information or change in circumstances has a material bearing on the issue of whether there are conditions of release that will reasonably assure the safety of any other person or the community.
SECTION 37. Said section 58A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting after the word “conviction”, in lines 153 and 154, the following words:- ; provided, however, that if the person who has attained the age of 18 years is held under arrest for a violation of an order issued pursuant to section18 or 34B of chapter 208, section 32 of chapter 209, section 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C or any act that would constitute abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A, or a violation of sections 13M or 15D of chapter 265, said justice shall make a written determination as to the considerations required by this subsection which shall be filed in the domestic violence record keeping system.
SECTION 38. Said section 58A of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following subsection:-
(8) If after a hearing under subsection (4) detention under subsection (3) is ordered or pretrial release subject to conditions under subsection (2) is ordered, then: (A) the clerk shall immediately notify the probation officer of the order; and (B) the order of detention under subsection (3) or order of pretrial release subject to conditions under subsection (2) shall be recorded in (i) the defendant’s criminal record as compiled by the commissioner of probation under section 100 and (ii) the domestic violence record keeping system.
SECTION 39. Section 58B of said chapter 276, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 2, the words “section 58 or section 58A” and inserting in place there of the following words:- sections 42A, 58, 58A or 87.
SECTION 40. The court administrator shall, in consultation with the executive office of public safety and security adopt rules and regulations for the standardization and dissemination to the district attorney, assistant district attorney, defense counsel and presiding justice, of an individual’s criminal and civil court history, which shall include, at a minimum: (i) a record of a dangerousness hearing pursuant to section 58A of chapter 276 of the General Laws, whether or not a dangerousness determination was made; (ii) pretrial detention or release conditions as agreed to pursuant to said section 58A of said chapter 276; (iii) all temporary or permanent restraining orders and affidavits issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208 of the General Laws, section 32 of chapter 209 of the General Laws, section 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A of the General Laws or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C of the General Laws; (iv) any violation of such temporary or permanent restraining orders; (v) a misdemeanor or felony involving abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A; (vi) any written findings of fact issued pursuant to sections 42A, 56A, 57, 58 and 58A of said chapter 276; (vii) any records concerning persons on probation maintained by the commissioner of probation pursuant to section 100 of said chapter 276, including any out-of-state criminal record; (viii) any other information maintained in and disseminated in accordance with the statewide domestic violence record keeping system maintained by the commissioner of probation; and (ix) updating the collection, storage, access, dissemination, content and use of criminal offender record information to reflect the inclusion of dangerousness hearing information pursuant to subsection (8) of said section 58A of said chapter 276.
SECTION 41. The chief administrator of the trial court department, in conjunction with the commissioner of probation, the Massachusetts office for victim assistance, the colonel of state police, Jane Doe, Inc., and local community-based domestic violence, rape, and sexual assault service providers selected by Jane Doe, Inc., shall develop and implement, subject to appropriation, a program for the dissemination of information on domestic violence and sexual violence prevention services available within each county to: (i) individuals filing a complaint pursuant to sections 3, 4 or 5 of chapter 209A of the General Laws; (ii) parties subject to an order issued pursuant to section 18 or 34B of chapter 208 of the General Laws, section 32 of chapter 209 of the General Laws, said chapter 209A or section 15 or 20 of chapter 209C of the General Laws; (iii) persons held under arrest for an offense set forth in subsection (1) of section 58A chapter 276 of the General Laws, which involves abuse, as defined in section 1 of said chapter 209A; and (iv) any other similarly situated individual accessing a court within that county.
SECTION 42. The department of elementary and secondary education shall, subject to appropriation, develop and produce educational materials on domestic violence, teen dating violence and healthy relationships, which shall be distributed annually to students in grades 9 to 12, inclusive. Such educational materials shall be utilized as part of the required health curriculum on safe and healthy relationships required by section 1 of chapter 71 of the General Laws.
SECTION 43. The department of public health shall ensure that not less than the amount credited to the Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention and Victim Assistance Fund, under section 20 of chapter 17 of the General Laws, shall be expended to support innovative services to prevent domestic and sexual violence and assist victims of domestic and sexual violence in the commonwealth provided through item 4513-1130 of the Massachusetts management and accounting reporting system.
SECTION 47. There shall be a special commission to examine the housing and shelter options available to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence and explore various options for expanding such resources through legislation. As a part of its study, the commission shall examine: (i) existing housing options for victims of domestic violence and sexual violence; (ii) innovative housing options for victims of domestic violence and sexual violence, including, but not limited to , the feasibility and costs associated with establishing a tax incentive that would be available to hotels and motels offering free rooms to victims of domestic violence and sexual violence; (iii) the feasibility of creating a database of available housing options for domestic violence and sexual violence victims, including participating hotels and motels, through the Massachusetts office of victim assistance which would be made available only to victim advocacy groups that directly assist domestic violence and sexual violence victims in obtaining housing; (iv) the variation of experiences, needs and outcomes for victims of increased vulnerability who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, low-income, minority or immigrant; (v) best practices from other states on housing alternatives for victims of domestic violence and sexual violence . The commission shall consist of: the executive director of the Massachusetts office of victim assistance or designee, who shall serve as chair; the secretary of public safety or a designee; the secretary of housing and community development or a designee; the commissioner of public health or a designee; the commissioner of children and families or a designee; the commissioner of transitional assistance or a designee; the commissioner of revenue or a designee; 2 members of the senate, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the senate minority leader; 2 members of the house of representatives, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives; the president of the Massachusetts District Attorneys’ Association or designee; a representative of the Massachusetts Lodging Association; and 3 members of victim advocacy groups, appointed by the governor. The commission shall submit its report and findings, along with any draft of legislation, to the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on the judiciary, the joint committee on children, families and persons with disabilities, and the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate, not later than June 30, 2015.
SECTION 48. The executive office of public safety and security shall adopt rules and regulations ensuring that records of previous hearings conducted pursuant to section 58A of chapter 276 of the General Laws, if the defendant was detained prior to trial or released with conditions pursuant to paragraph (2) of said section 58A of said chapter 276, shall not be included in any criminal offender record information available to persons other than criminal justice agencies, unless the criminal charge to which the hearing relates resulted in a felony or misdemeanor conviction and would otherwise be available to such person pursuant to section 172 of chapter 6 of the General Laws, or any other applicable statute or regulation.
SECTION 49. The executive office of public safety and security, in conjunction with the district attorneys, shall develop a report to be filed with the clerks of the house of representative and senate, the house and senate committees on ways and means, the joint committee on public safety and homeland security and the joint committee on the judiciary. The report shall contain, but not be limited to, comprehensive information and statistics related to domestic violence crimes and arrests and prosecutions of domestic violence related offenses, including dangerousness hearings, to serve as an examination of the effectiveness of the commonwealth’s domestic violence laws. The report shall include data collection following the implementation of this act and shall be filed not later than June 30, 2015.
SECTION 50. Sections 1, 5, 9 and 18 shall take effect on July 1, 2015.
SECTION 51. Section 4 shall take effect on January 1, 2015.
Approved, August 8, 2014.