Missouri Senate

Senate Substitute

JOINT COMMITTEE ON THE JUSTICE SYSTEM

The act creates a permanent joint committee of the General Assembly to be known as the Joint Committee on the Justice System. The Committee shall consist of members of the General Assembly and three ex officio members. The Committee is charged with reviewing of all aspects of the state's justice system and making any recommendations for legislative change to the General Assembly. A permanent subcommittee of the Committee shall be established to periodically review the criminal code. An advisory committee may be established to aid the subcommittee, consisting of representatives of the Missouri Supreme Court, the Attorney General, and other individuals known to be interested in the improvement of the state's criminal laws (21.880).

This provision is substantially similar to provisions contained in SS/SB 575 (2014).

PROSECUTING ATTORNEYS AND CIRCUIT ATTORNEYS' RETIREMENT SYSTEM

The act states that a four dollar surcharge, payable to the retirement system, shall be assessed in cases where a person pleads guilty and pays a fine through a fine collection center (56.807, 488.026).

This provision is identical to provisions contained in HCS/SB 621 (2014), HCS/SB 615 (2014), HCS/SCS/SB 672 (2014), HCS/SCS/SB 854 (2014), and HCS/SCS/SB 824 (2014).

STATE LEGAL EXPENSE FUND - FREE HEALTH CLINICS

Currently, for the purposes of the State Legal Expense Fund a free health clinic is defined as a nonprofit community health center, exempt from federal taxation, which provides primary care and preventative services to people without health insurance without charge. This act changes the term "free health clinic" to "community health clinic" and modifies its definition by removing the without charge qualification.

The act also excludes federally funded community health centers and rural health clinics from the description of nonprofit community health centers for the purposes of the State Legal Expense Fund (105.711).

This act is identical to the perfected version of SS/SB 758 (2014).

THE PRODUCTION OF SOURCE DOCUMENTS FOR DRIVERS' LICENSE RENEWAL

The act specifies that a person who has presented documents to obtain a driver's license, nondriver's license, or instruction permit must not be required to present the documents again to obtain a renewal or replacement except for documents that demonstrate lawful presence of an applicant who is not a citizen or if it is reasonably believed by the Department of Revenue that the prior license may have been issued as a result of a fraudulent act of the applicant or the applicant is applying for or renewing a commercial driver's license or instruction permit(302.065, 302.067).

This provision is identical to provisions contained in HCS/HB 1447 (2014).

INTEREST ON JUDGMENTS

The act provides a definition for the term "judgment balance" and states that post-judgment payments shall be applied first to post-judgment costs, then to interest, and then to judgment balance (408.040).

This provision is effective on January 1, 2015.

OSCA PARENT PLANNING HANDBOOK

Currently, each court must mail a handbook created by the Office of State Courts Administrator to individuals involved in a dissolution of marriage proceeding involving minor children. The act specifies that the court must "provide" the handbook to each party to the dissolution rather than "mail" (452.556).

MOOTNESS DOCTRINE & FULL ORDER OF PROTECTION

Currently, the public interest exception to the mootness doctrine applies to an appeal of a full order of protection which has expired and subjects the person against whom the order is issued to significant collateral consequences. This act repeals the requirement that the order of protection must subject the person against whom the order is issued to significant collateral consequences in order for the public exception to the mootness doctrine to apply (455.007).

TRUSTS

The act specifies that property held in some form of joint ownership with a right of survivorship by a husband and wife shall be treated as being held as tenants by the entirety upon the property's transfer to a qualified spousal trust (456.950).

This provision is substantially similar to SB 499 (2014).

Currently, "no-contest" or "in terrorem" clauses are enforceable. These types of provisions in a trust or will generally provide that a beneficiary forfeits interest in the trust or will property if the beneficiary contests the trust or will.

This act provides that when an irrevocable trust contains a no-contest clause, as defined in the act, then an interested person may still file a petition with a court for a ruling on whether a particular claim for relief would trigger forfeiture. The petition for such a ruling may be filed either as a separate judicial proceeding or along with other claims for relief. The act specifies that when ruling on the petition, the court shall consider the text of the clause, and the context of the terms of the trust and factual allegations in the petition. The court shall not accept evidence beyond what is provided in the pleadings and the trust instrument.

The act states that the judgment on the application of a no-contest clause is appealable. Following the ruling, if claims are subsequently filed in which differing facts are asserted from those which the no-contest clause judgment was based upon, then the party in whose favor the judgment was rendered shall have no protection from enforcement of the no-contest clause provided under this act.

The act also provides the types of circumstances in which a no-contest clause is not enforceable such as objections to venue or a claim for relief concerning an accounting error. In these situations the court may award attorneys' fees and costs (456.4-420).

Similar to a trust, the act states that if a will contains a no-contest clause an interested person may file a petition with the court for determination on whether a court action would trigger the application of the no-contest clause or trigger forfeiture (474.395).

These provisions are identical to SB 500 (2014).

JUDICIAL POSITIONS

The act modifies the number of judges to serve in each district of the Court of Appeals in order to reflect the current total number authorized by statute (477.160, 477.170, 477.180).

The act repeals provisions of law which state that when a judicial weighted workload indicates for three consecutive years that a judicial circuit with a population of one-hundred thousand or more is in need of four or more full-time judicial positions, then there shall be one additional associate circuit judge position in such circuit(Section 478.320).

Currently, the twenty-first judicial circuit has nineteen circuit judges. This amendment provides that the twenty-first circuit shall have twenty circuit judges which shall sit in twenty divisions. The twenty-first circuit shall also have an additional associate circuit judge which shall be in addition to the associate circuit judges provided for under the current statutory formula (478.437).

Currently, the sixteenth judicial circuit has nine associate circuit judges with five of the judges located in Kansas City and four of the judges located in Independence. The act states that the sixteenth judicial circuit shall have ten associate circuit judges, which shall sit in divisions numbered 25 through 34. The 34th division shall sit in a location determined by the court en banc. This tenth associate circuit judge position shall not be included in the statutory formula for authorizing additional associate circuit judgeships under current law (478.464).

The act provides the thirty-first judicial circuit with an additional associate circuit judge, and specifies that the additional associate circuit judges, including one awarded under the current statutory formula, awarded in fiscal years 2014 and 2015 shall not be included in the statutory formula for authorizing additional associate circuit judgeships under current law (478.513).

The act states that in the eleventh judicial circuit there shall be an additional associate circuit judge position. This position shall be elected in 2016, and shall not be included in the statutory formula for authorizing additional associate circuit judgeships under current law (478.600).

The thirty-eighth circuit shall have two circuit judges. The circuit judge in division two shall be elected in 2016, and such position shall not be considered vacant until January 1, 2017. The judge in division one shall be elected in 2018 (478.740).

THIRTEENTH CIRCUIT'S DRUG COURT COMMISSIONER

The act reinstitutes the thirteenth judicial circuit's authority to appoint a drug court commissioner (478.610).

This provision is identical to provisions in HCS/HB 1448 (2014).

REMOVING DOCUMENTS FROM THE COURT FILE

The act prohibits the adoption of local court rule which grants a judge the discretion to remove a communication, pleading, or file from a court file without the agreement of all parties (483.140).

OVERPAYMENT OF COURT COSTS

The act provides that municipalities may retain the court costs that have been overpaid to the municipal court and do not exceed five dollars (488.014).

This provision is identical to provisions contained in SB 615 (2014).

THIRTY-FIRST CIRCUIT SURCHARGE

This act provides that a surcharge of up to ten dollars may be collected in all criminal proceedings filed in the thirty-first judicial circuit if the surcharge was authorized by a county or municipal order, ordinance, or resolution.

The moneys collected from the surcharge must be use for the costs associated with the land assemblage and purchase, construction, maintenance and operation of any county or municipal judicial facility (488.2206).

These provisions are identical to provisions contained in the SCS/HB 1238 (2014), and substantially similar to SB 915 (2014).

FLORISSANT SURCHARGE FOR MUNICIPAL VIOLATIONS

The act provides that the City of Florissant may collect a surcharge of up to ten dollars for each municipal ordinance violation case. The moneys collected from the surcharge shall be used for the land assemblage and purchase, construction, maintenance, and upkeep of a municipal courthouse (488.2245).

This provision is identical to HB 2084 (2014).

STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR INJURIOUS FALSEHOOD

The act provides that an action for injurious falsehood has a two year statute of limitations (516.140).

JUDGEMENT OF UNPAID RENT

Under the act, any judgment awarding unpaid rent may be revived upon publication as set by existing law and need not be personally served on the defendant (516.350).

This provision is identical to HB 1351 (2014).

GARNISHMENTS

Under the act, clerks of circuit courts are authorized to collect a surcharge of up to ten dollars when processing garnishments and money from the surcharge is to be used to maintain and improve case processing and record preservation (488.305).

The act adds language which provides that notice of garnishment shall have the effect of attaching all personal property at the time of service or in the case of a continuous wage garnishment, until the judgment is paid in full, or until the employment relationship is terminated.

Garnishments which would otherwise have equal priority shall have priority according to the date of service, and when wages have been attached by more than one writ of garnishment then the employer must inform the inferior garnisher of the other garnishments (525.040).

When applicable, a garnishee may discharge himself by paying the money or giving the property owed to the defendant to the attorney for the party on whose behalf the order of garnishment was issued, when applicable. Additionally, the court may order the delivery of the defendant's property possessed by the garnishee to the attorney for the party on whose behalf the order of garnishment was issued (525.070, 525.080).

The act allows the garnishee to deduct up to twenty dollars, or a fee previously agreed upon between the garnishee and judgment debtor when the garnishee is a financial institution, for expenses in answering interrogatories and withholding the funds. The garnishee may also file a motion with the court to obtain additional costs incurred in answering the interrogatories (525.230).

The act modifies provisions relating to the issuance of a writ of sequestration. Under current law, the wages of state government employees are not subject to direct garnishment, and instead must be collected under a process called sequestration. This act provides that the government employer shall have the same duties as a private employer when served with a garnishment order. The act repeals language requiring a writ of sequestration when the judgment debtor is a government employee, and provides that all garnishments against such employees shall proceed in the same manner as any other garnishment proceedings (525.310).

These provisions regarding garnishments are effective on January 1, 2015.

These provisions are similar to provisions contained in HCS/HB 1612 (2014), HCS/SCS/SB 672 (2014), HB 204 (2013) and SS/SCS/HCS/HB 374 & 434 (2013).

COMMUNITY SERVICE:

The act grants limited civil immunity to any entity which supervises community service work performed in connection with a written deferred prosecution agreement (537.602).

This provision is identical to HB 1438 (2014), and identical to provisions contained in HCS/SB 100 (2013), HB 567 (2013), and HCS/HB 371 (2013).

UNLAWFUL FUNERAL PROTESTS

Under current law, it is a Class B misdemeanor for a person to picket or otherwise protest within 300 feet of a funeral from one hour before it starts to one hour after it ends. The definition of funeral includes the ceremonies, processions, and memorial services held in connection with the burial or cremation of the dead.

This act creates a new section of law for the offense, specifies the types of establishments at which funerals or burial services may be held, provides a definition for "other protest activities, and modifies the definition of funeral (574.160).

These provisions are identical to HB 1372 (2014).

DISARMING A PEACE OFFICER

The act modifies the crime of disarming a peace officer by adding language which provides that a person commits such crime if the person intentionally removes a less-lethal weapon from a peace officer including blunt impact, chemical or conducted energy devices used in the performance of the officer's duties or if the person intentionally deprives the peace officer of such equipment while the officer is acting within the scope of his or her duties (575.153).

This provision is identical to HB 2190 (2014), and to provisions contained in HCS/HB 1540 (2014) and HCS/HB 2116 (2014).

CRIME AGAINST A DMH EMPLOYEE OR PROPERTY

A person ordered to the Department of Mental Health after being determined by a court to be a sexually violent predator who knowingly commits violence against an employee of the Department or another offender housed in a secure facility shall be guilty of a Class B felony. Damage to any building or other property owned by the Department by such person is a Class C felony (632.520).

This provision is identical to HB 1243 (2014).

CYBER CRIME INVESTIGATION FUND

This act re-authorizes a grant program that expired in September of 2013 that supplied grants to law enforcement agencies investigating Internet sex crimes against children. The program is reauthorized from August 28, 2014 until December 31, 2024.

In addition, this act repeals a provision requiring the General Assembly to annually appropriate $3 million to the Cyber Crime Investigation Fund.

Under current law, grants may be awarded from the fund to pay the salaries of detectives and computer forensic personnel. This act allows the grants to be used to pay the salaries of assistant prosecuting attorneys.

In addition, this act adds the executive director of the Missouri Office of Prosecution Services to a panel of officials who award grants from the fund (650.120).

This provision is similar to a provision of SB 575 (2014).

JESSICA BAKER