PRISONER RE-ENTRY PROGRAM- Section 217.738

This act creates a prisoner re-entry program within the Department of Corrections for prisoners who are not on parole or conditional release and who are moving to the City of St. Louis upon release.

Subject to appropriations, money for the program is to be appropriated to the Department of Corrections, which then transfers the money to the city. The city must issue a request for proposals for re-entry services. The city and the contractor are jointly responsible to the Department of Corrections to ensure the services are provided and must provide all data and records to the department necessary to oversee and measure the effectiveness of the program.

This act is substantially similar to HB 756 (2013).

SEXUAL OFFENSES - Sections 160.261 to 217.010, 217.703, 339.100, 375.1312, 556.036 to 556.061, 558.018, 558.026, 559.105.8, 559.117, 566.020 to 566.226, 589.015, 590.700, & 632.480

Under this act, the crimes of forcible rape and sexual assault are renamed first and second degree rape, the crimes of forcible sodomy and deviate sexual assault are renamed first and second degree sodomy, and the crimes of sexual abuse and first degree sexual misconduct are renamed first and second degree sexual abuse. Second and third degree sexual misconduct are renamed first and second degree sexual misconduct.

References throughout the statutes to the former names are updated to reflect the change. A section that prohibits insurers from taking certain actions based on a person's status as a domestic violence victim was further modified to align with statutory definitions in current law related to domestic violence.

Under current law, forcible rape, forcible sodomy and sexual abuse all occur when a person engages in certain specified sexual conduct with another person by forcible compulsion. This act provides that a person violates the law when engaging in the sexual conduct with another person who is incapacitated, incapable of consent, or lacks the capacity to consent, or by forcible compulsion.

Under current law, assent does not constitute consent if it is given by a person who due to youth, mental disease or defect, or intoxication is manifestly unable to make a reasonable judgement regarding the conduct charged. This act provides that a drug-induced state or any other reason can result in the person being unable to consent.

In addition, this act repeals current law specifying that a person is not to be considered incapacitated if the person became incapacitated after consenting to an act and a crime is not committed when an offender reasonably believed the victim consented to the act and was not incapacitated.

Current law provides that multiple sentences of imprisonment must run concurrently unless the court specifies that the sentences are to run consecutively, except when the sentences are for the crimes of rape or sodomy, in which case the sentences for those crimes must run consecutively. Under this act, sentences for the crimes of first degree statutory rape and first degree statutory sodomy must also run consecutively.

CIVIL COMMITMENT AND RELEASE OF SEXUALLY VIOLENT PREDATORS- Sections 632.480, 632.498, 632.505

This act revises the definition of "sexually violent offense" for purposes of civil commitment to include sexual abuse in the first degree, sexual assault in the first degree, deviate sexual assault in the first degree, and an act of abuse of a child involving either sexual contact, a prohibited sexual act, sexual abuse, or sexual exploitation of a minor, or any felony offense that contains elements substantially similar to these offenses. The intent of the legislature to is to reject and abrogate earlier case law interpretations on the meaning of or definition of "sexually violence offense".

This provision contains an emergency clause.

This act also adds to the list of persons who shall be served with petitions for the conditional release of a sexually violent predator to include the prosecuting attorney of the jurisdiction where the person is to be released.

Under this act, when a person designated as a sexually violent predator is electronically monitored while on conditional release, the Department of Corrections must provide, upon request, the chief of the law enforcement agency for the county or city where the facility that released the offender is located with access to the real-time and recorded information collected by the electronic monitoring, including any alerts generated by the technology. The access must continue while the person is living in the county, city, town, or village where the facility that released the offender is located.

The electronic information must be closed and not disclosed to anyone outside of the law enforcement agency except upon an order of the court supervising the conditional release.

These provisions are substantially similar to HCS/SB 188 (2013) and provisions in this act are identical to SB 285 (2013); HB 577 (2013).

SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY- Sections 43.650, 589.400, 589.402

Under this amendment, beginning August 28, 2013, no information shall be provided on sex offender websites maintained by the Highway Patrol or any local law enforcement agencies regarding offenders who were under the age of 18 when they committed their sex offenses. Information regarding such offenders that is currently on the websites must be removed immediately.

Offenders on the adult registry who were juveniles at the time of their offenses will be required to register as sex offenders on the adult registry for a period of five years from the later of the date they were found guilty or were released from custody. After the five-year period, such offenders may petition for removal from the registry.

The petition may be filed in the circuit court in the county in which the person was found guilty of the offense requiring registration. A person whose offense was adjudicated outside the state may petition in the circuit court in the county in which such person resides if the person has been a resident of Missouri for at least five years prior to filing the petition.

The court must grant the petition unless it finds that the petitioner in this state, or any other state, country, or jurisdiction, has been found guilty of, or has charges pending for, failure to register or an additional offense that would require registration on either the adult or juvenile sex offender registries, has not completed any required period of supervised release, probation, or parole, or, if the offense was adjudicated outside the state, the offender has not been a Missouri resident for at least five years.

If the petition was denied for pending charges, the petitioner may file a new petition if those charges are subsequently dismissed or the person is acquitted. A person denied for failing to register may petition again after five years have passed from the date the person was found guilty of failure to register. If the denial is for not completing a required term of probation, parole, or conditional release and the person subsequently completes such term, then the person may immediately file a new petition. A person denied for committing an additional offense requiring registration may never file a petition again under this act. If the petition was denied because the person did not meet the five-year residency requirement, then a new petition may be filed whenever the person can meet the requirement.

ADRIANE CROUSE