Bill Text: CT SB00454 | 2016 | General Assembly | Comm Sub
Bill Title: An Act Concerning Automatic Erasure Of Criminal Records And Bail For Persons Charged With Misdemeanor Drug Possession.
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-04-27 - Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate [SB00454 Detail]
Download: Connecticut-2016-SB00454-Comm_Sub.html
General Assembly |
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February Session, 2016 |
*_____SB00454APP___042716____* |
AN ACT CONCERNING AUTOMATIC ERASURE OF CRIMINAL RECORDS AND BAIL FOR PERSONS CHARGED WITH MISDEMEANOR DRUG POSSESSION.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 54-142a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2016):
(a) Whenever in any criminal case, on or after October 1, 1969, the accused, by a final judgment, is found not guilty of the charge or the charge is dismissed, or the charge is dropped prior to arraignment or the accused is released without being charged due to a false arrest on account of mistaken identity, all police and court records and records of any state's attorney pertaining to such charge shall be automatically erased (1) immediately upon the dismissal of the charge, upon the charge being dropped prior to arraignment or if the accused is released without being charged due to a false arrest on account of mistaken identity, (2) upon the expiration of the time to file a writ of error or take an appeal, if an appeal is not taken, or (3) upon final determination of the appeal sustaining a finding of not guilty or a dismissal, if an appeal is taken, as applicable. Nothing in this subsection shall require the erasure of any record pertaining to a charge for which the defendant was found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect or guilty but not criminally responsible by reason of mental disease or defect.
(b) Whenever in any criminal case prior to October 1, 1969, the accused, by a final judgment, was found not guilty of the charge or the charge was dismissed, all police and court records and records of the state's or prosecuting attorney or the prosecuting grand juror pertaining to such charge shall be erased by operation of law and the clerk or any person charged with the retention and control of such records shall not disclose to anyone their existence or any information pertaining to any charge so erased; provided nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the arrested person or any one of his heirs from filing a petition for erasure with the court granting such not guilty judgment or dismissal, or, where the matter had been before a municipal court, a trial justice, the Circuit Court or the Court of Common Pleas with the records center of the Judicial Department and thereupon all police and court records and records of the state's attorney, prosecuting attorney or prosecuting grand juror pertaining to such charge shall be erased. Nothing in this subsection shall require the erasure of any record pertaining to a charge for which the defendant was found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect.
(c) (1) Whenever any charge in a criminal case has been nolled in the Superior Court, or in the Court of Common Pleas, if at least thirteen months have elapsed since such nolle, all police and court records and records of the state's or prosecuting attorney or the prosecuting grand juror pertaining to such charge shall be automatically erased, except that in cases of nolles entered in the Superior Court, Court of Common Pleas, Circuit Court, municipal court or by a justice of the peace prior to April 1, 1972, such records shall be deemed erased by operation of law and the clerk or the person charged with the retention and control of such records shall not disclose to anyone their existence or any information pertaining to any charge so erased, provided nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the arrested person or any one of his heirs from filing a petition to the court or to the records center of the Judicial Department, as the case may be, to have such records erased, in which case such records shall be erased.
(2) Whenever any charge in a criminal case has been continued at the request of the prosecuting attorney, and a period of thirteen months has elapsed since the granting of such continuance during which period there has been no prosecution or other disposition of the matter, the charge shall be nolled upon motion of the arrested person and [such erasure may thereafter be effected or a petition filed therefor, as the case may be, as provided in this subsection for nolled cases] all police and court records and records of any state's attorney pertaining to such charge shall be automatically erased.
(d) (1) Whenever prior to October 1, 1974, any person who has been convicted of an offense in any court of this state has received an absolute pardon for such offense, such person or any one of his heirs may, at any time subsequent to such pardon, file a petition with the superior court at the location in which such conviction was effected, or with the superior court at the location having custody of the records of such conviction or with the records center of the Judicial Department if such conviction was in the Court of Common Pleas, Circuit Court, municipal court or by a trial justice court, for an order of erasure, and the Superior Court or records center of the Judicial Department shall direct all police and court records and records of the state's or prosecuting attorney pertaining to such case to be erased.
(2) Whenever such absolute pardon was received on or after October 1, 1974, such records shall be erased.
(e) (1) The clerk of the court or any person charged with retention and control of such records in the records center of the Judicial Department or any law enforcement agency having information contained in such erased records shall (A) not later than sixty days after such records are erased, notify the subject of the erased records of such erasure and, if such erasure was due to the subject's false arrest or dismissal of charges due to a lack of a finding of probable cause, such person charged with retention and control of such records shall destroy any records of fingerprints, photographs or physical description of the subject of the records or similar records created at the time of such arrest, and (B) not disclose to anyone, except the subject of the record, upon submission pursuant to guidelines prescribed by the Office of the Chief Court Administrator of satisfactory proof of the subject's identity, information pertaining to any charge erased under any provision of this section. [and such] Such clerk or person charged with the retention and control of such records shall forward a notice of such erasure to any [law enforcement agency] state or federal agency or any municipality to which he knows information concerning the arrest has been disseminated and [such disseminated information shall be erased from the records of such law enforcement agency] any such state agency or municipality shall immediately erase such records. Such clerk or such person, as the case may be, shall provide adequate security measures to safeguard against unauthorized access to or dissemination of such records or upon the request of the accused cause the actual physical destruction of such records, except that such clerk or such person shall not cause the actual physical destruction of such records until three years have elapsed from the date of the final disposition of the criminal case to which such records pertain.
(2) No fee shall be charged in any court with respect to any petition under this section.
(3) Any person who shall have been the subject of such an erasure shall be deemed to have never been arrested within the meaning of the general statutes with respect to the proceedings so erased and may so swear under oath or otherwise deny the occurrence of such arrest for any purpose, including, but not limited to, an application for employment or for a firearm or ammunition permit or certificate pursuant to title 29 or for the lawful purchase of a firearm or ammunition.
(f) Upon motion properly brought, the court or a judge thereof, if such court is not in session, may order disclosure of such records (1) to a defendant in an action for false arrest arising out of the proceedings so erased, or (2) to the prosecuting attorney and defense counsel in connection with any perjury charges which the prosecutor alleges may have arisen from the testimony elicited during the trial. Such disclosure of such records is subject also to any records destruction program pursuant to which the records may have been destroyed. The jury charge in connection with erased offenses may be ordered by the judge for use by the judiciary, provided the names of the accused and the witnesses are omitted therefrom.
(g) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any police or court records or the records of any state's attorney or prosecuting attorney with respect to any information or indictment containing more than one count (1) while the criminal case is pending, or (2) when the criminal case is disposed of unless and until all counts are entitled to erasure in accordance with the provisions of this section, except that when the criminal case is disposed of, electronic records or portions of electronic records released to the public that reference a charge that would otherwise be entitled to erasure under this section shall be erased in accordance with the provisions of this section. Nothing in this section shall require the erasure of any information contained in the registry of protective orders established pursuant to section 51-5c. For the purposes of this subsection, "electronic record" means any police or court record or the record of any state's attorney or prosecuting attorney that is an electronic record, as defined in section 1-267, or a computer printout.
(h) Any records taken at the time of arrest that include a DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) sample or any DNA profile created from such sample that are subject to erasure pursuant to this section, shall be destroyed and expunged and purged from any system in accordance with the provisions of section 54-102l.
(i) The Court Support Services Division of the Judicial Branch shall maintain a listing of any persons convicted of a misdemeanor violation of section 21a-279. If any such person has no other arrests during the five-year period following such a conviction and is not known to have illegally sold or possessed controlled substances during said period, the records of such conviction shall be erased and the person charged with retention and control of such records in the records center of the Judicial Department or any law enforcement agency having information contained in such erased records shall notify the person who is the subject of such records of such erasure.
[(h)] (j) For the purposes of this section, "court records" shall not include a record or transcript of the proceedings made or prepared by an official court reporter, assistant court reporter or monitor.
Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 54-64a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2016):
(a) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection and subsection (b) of this section, when any arrested person is presented before the Superior Court, said court shall, in bailable offenses, promptly order the release of such person upon the first of the following conditions of release found sufficient to reasonably ensure the appearance of the arrested person in court: (A) Upon his execution of a written promise to appear without special conditions, (B) upon his execution of a written promise to appear with nonfinancial conditions, (C) upon his execution of a bond without surety in no greater amount than necessary, (D) upon his execution of a bond with surety in no greater amount than necessary. In addition to or in conjunction with any of the conditions enumerated in subparagraphs (A) to (D), inclusive, of this subdivision the court may, when it has reason to believe that the person is drug-dependent and where necessary, reasonable and appropriate, order the person to submit to a urinalysis drug test and to participate in a program of periodic drug testing and treatment. The results of any such drug test shall not be admissible in any criminal proceeding concerning such person.
(2) The court may, in determining what conditions of release will reasonably ensure the appearance of the arrested person in court, consider the following factors: (A) The nature and circumstances of the offense, (B) such person's record of previous convictions, (C) such person's past record of appearance in court after being admitted to bail, (D) such person's family ties, (E) such person's employment record, (F) such person's financial resources, character and mental condition, and (G) such person's community ties.
(3) The court shall release a person charged with no crime other than a misdemeanor violation of section 21a-279 upon such person's execution of a written promise to appear without special conditions, or upon such person's execution of a written promise to appear with nonfinancial conditions.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: | ||
Section 1 |
October 1, 2016 |
54-142a |
Sec. 2 |
October 1, 2016 |
54-64a(a) |
JUD |
Joint Favorable Subst. |
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APP |
Joint Favorable |