BOSTON — Governor
Charlie Baker today re-filed legislation to provide law enforcement and the
courts with additional tools to ensure dangerous criminals are held in custody
pending trial. First filed on September 6th, 2018, the proposal would expand
the list of offenses that can provide grounds for a dangerousness hearing and
close certain loopholes at the start and end of the criminal process that
currently limit or prevent effective action to address legitimate safety
concerns. Governor Baker made the announcement in Everett at the Massachusetts
Major City Chiefs of Police Association Meeting.
“Public safety is a fundamental responsibility of government
and in order to fulfill that duty, we must allow local police and district
attorneys to effectively deal with people who repeatedly break the law,” said
Governor Baker. “Last session we enacted several provisions to ensure that a
small lapse in judgment doesn’t ruin a life, and we must now give law
enforcement, prosecutors and the courts the tools they need to keep our
communities safe. We look forward to working with the Legislature to pass this
important bill.”
Today’s proposal will strengthen the ability of judges to
enforce the conditions of pre-trial release by empowering police to detain
people who they observe violating court-ordered release conditions; current law
does not allow this, and instead requires a court to first issue a warrant.
“Loopholes in the current system limit or prevent effective
action to address legitimate safety concerns,” said Lieutenant Governor Karyn
Polito. “This bill will empower law enforcement with the flexibility and tools
they need to protect their communities from dangerous defendants.”
Under this proposal, judges will be empowered to revoke a
person’s release when the offender has violated a court-ordered condition, such
as an order to stay away from a victim, or from a public playground. Current
law requires an additional finding of dangerousness before release may be
revoked.
“One of the most important factors in assessing whether a
person is safe to release into the community is whether they have committed
serious acts of violence in the past,” said Secretary of Public Safety and
Security Tom Turco. “This change in the law would allow a judge to consider the
danger posed by people who have been proven to have committed serious crimes in
the past, and who are now charged with a new crime. Passage of this bill will
help prevent criminal defendants with a pattern of violent conduct from
committing new crimes while they are pending trial.”
“A defendant’s past criminal history should absolutely be
considered as a factor at any such dangerousness hearing rather than just the
alleged crime that is currently before the court,” said Brian Kyes, Chelsea
Police Chief and President of the Massachusetts Major City Chiefs. “It is
essential that in conducting a proper risk analysis in order to determine
whether the defendant is to be considered a potential danger to any victim,
witness or to the public in general, that their past criminal history –
especially as it pertains to previous convictions for violent crimes - is
considered and weighed based on its relevancy pertaining to a demonstrated
propensity to commit violence. This bill will rectify the existing gap that
currently occurs during a dangerousness hearing.”
“I applaud and fully support the Formal Session filing of
this bill authored by Governor Baker,” said Frank G. Frederickson, Yarmouth
Police Chief. “This bill will help protect the public from repeat and/or dangerous
persons charged with crimes. The measures in this filing are sound and
necessary to protect our citizens and Police Officers. There is urgency in
passing this legislation. For every day that this bill is not acted on is
another day that we are all vulnerable to the most dangerous in society. When
it comes to public safety bills, they should be taken seriously and acted on
swiftly.”
The legislation also expands the list of offenses which can
provide grounds for a dangerousness hearing including crimes of sexual abuse
and crimes of threatened or potential violence. It also follows the
long-standing federal model in including a defendant’s history of serious
criminal convictions as grounds that may warrant a dangerousness hearing.
Current law requires courts to focus only on the crime charged and ignore a
defendant’s criminal history when determining whether the defendant may be the
subject of this sort of hearing.
Additional provisions of this legislation:
Improves the system for notifying victims of crimes of abuse
and other dangerous crimes when a defendant is going to be released by creating
clear lines of responsibility among police, prosecutors and corrections
personnel to notify victims about an offender’s imminent release from custody,
and create a six-hour window for authorities to inform a victim before an
offender is allowed to be released.
Creates a new felony offense for cutting off a court-ordered
GPS device.
Requires that the courts develop a text message service to
remind defendants of upcoming court dates, reducing the chance they will forget
and have a warrant issued for their arrest.
Allows dangerousness hearings at any point during a criminal
proceeding, rather than requiring a prosecutor to either seek a hearing
immediately or forfeit that ability entirely, even if circumstances later arise
indicating that the defendant poses a serious risk to the community.
Requires that the probation department, bail commissioners
and bail magistrates notify authorities who can take remedial action when a
person who is on pre-trial release commits a new offense anywhere in the
Commonwealth or elsewhere.
Creates a level playing field for appeals of district court
release decisions to the superior court by allowing appeals by prosecutors, in
addition to defendants, and giving more deference to determinations made in the
first instance by our district court judges.
Creates a task force to recommend adding information to
criminal records so that prosecutors and judges can make more informed
recommendations and decisions about conditions of release and possible
detention on grounds of dangerousness.
The legislation also closes loopholes at the start and end
of the criminal process that currently limit or prevent effective action to
address legitimate safety concerns. It extends the requirement that police take
the fingerprints of people arrested for felonies to all people arrested,
regardless of the charge, to ensure that decisions about release can be made
with knowledge of a person’s true identity and full criminal history. It also
allows, for the first time, bail commissioners and bail magistrates to consider
dangerousness in deciding whether to release an arrestee from a police station
when court is out of session.
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