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Protester penalties, tougher sex misconduct punishment in omnibus public safety bill

Public Safety Commissioner Mona Dohman and BCA Superintendent Drew Evans discuss the proposed omnibus public safety and security finance bill Tuesday with the House public safety committee. Photo by Paul Battaglia
Public Safety Commissioner Mona Dohman and BCA Superintendent Drew Evans discuss the proposed omnibus public safety and security finance bill Tuesday with the House public safety committee. Photo by Paul Battaglia

Another effort is underway to penalize protestors whose actions may put public safety at risk.

This time it is in the omnibus public safety and security finance bill.

A delete-all amendment to HF2856 was offered to the House Public Safety and Security Policy and Finance Committee Tuesday and public testimony taken.

Rep. Brian Johnson (R-Cambridge), the committee chair and bill sponsor, said amendments are to be offered Wednesday before a committee vote. No public testimony will be taken.

Rep. Nick Zerwas (R-Elk River) sponsors the provision that would increase the penalty from a misdemeanor to a gross misdemeanor for someone who intentionally obstructs traffic “that is entering, exiting, or on a freeway or entering, exiting, or on a public roadway within the boundaries of airport property with the intent to interfere with, obstruct, or otherwise disrupt traffic.” It would also add restricting passenger access to the statute regarding unlawful interference with transit.

Zerwas said last month the bill is not about silencing voices, rather to discourage “highly dangerous and illegal behavior” and punish people who are not deterred. Rep. Raymond Dehn (DFL-Mpls) countered the bill looks like “a hammer” on protestors who want people to hear their concerns.

The standalone bill containing the protestor language, HF390, awaits action by the full House.

 

Monetary changes

An approved resolution for House budget targets provided the committee with an additional $7.12 million to spend for the current biennium that ends June 30, 2019.

More than half of the amount — nearly $3.67 million — would be directed to the Guardian ad Litem program in Fiscal Year 2019 to comply with state and federal mandates to represent the best interests of children in juvenile and family court proceedings. A match to that proposed by Gov. Mark Dayton in his supplemental budget request would provide 45.5 full-time equivalent new positions.

Testimony last week indicated hundreds of children eligible for such help are not receiving assistance because of budgetary issues and caseloads that continue to grow.

“We have 304 unassigned cases in Hennepin County which translates to about 652 children who are not having advocacy on their behalf,” Laurie Kusek, the county’s Guardian ad Litem program manager said Tuesday. “This is the third year we have been unable to assign guardians to our cases.”

Other Fiscal Year 2019 funding includes additional dollars to provide supervision to offenders placed on intensive probation: $1 million for county probation officer reimbursement and $500,000 for the Department of Corrections.

The Board of Public Defense would receive $850,000 in Fiscal Year 2019 for additional staffing and the Supreme Court would receive $182,000 in Fiscal Year 2018 for case management system development.

View the spreadsheet.

Corrections Commissioner Tom Roy lamented that $7.86 million was not included to address a projected increase in offender population, nor was $7.8 million in the bill to cover the department’s health care contract. Both are in the governor’s supplemental budget request.

Roy said Fiscal Year 2019 health contract funding was not included in last year’s budget law because the department was negotiating the contract at that time. He said the Legislature directed the department to submit the request this year with final numbers known, which came in $3 million lower than last year’s request.

Without additional dollars, money would likely be shifted from treatment areas, creating further concern about corrections officer safety and that inmates won’t be as well-suited for life upon release.

“We want to do everything we can to help you, but sometimes we’re only given so many dollars to work with,” Johnson said.

 

Working groups

Creation of the Task Force on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women is called for with $79,000 in Fiscal Year 2019 appropriated for the group. Among the group’s goals would be to recommend ways to reduce and end violence against indigenous women. It would also serve as a liaison between the Public Safety Department and agencies and nongovernmental organizations that provide services to victims, their families and communities.

At a hearing last week, supporters noted that Native American women experience violence at rates more than twice those of other groups.

A working group would also be established — and $39,000 appropriated in Fiscal Year 2019 — to examine crimes against vulnerable adults.

 

Ignition interlock, other driving changes

Before a DWI offender could be re-licensed to drive, use of an ignition interlock system for one year would be required if it is a second impaired driving incident in 10 years or a third lifetime offense. Two years of ignition interlock usage would be required for a person whose license was revoked for either of those reasons, and the person had an alcohol concentration of twice the legal limit or refused to submit a required breath, blood or urine sample.

A member of the audience looks through the omnibus public safety and security finance bill Tuesday. The House public safety committee is expected to vote on the bill Wednesday. Photo by Paul Battaglia

According to program guidelines, “an ignition interlock is a small device with a camera that is installed in a vehicle to measure an individual’s alcohol concentration level. … When a person blows into the device his/her alcohol concentration level is detected and a photo is taken. If the device detects alcohol, the vehicle will not start.”

In addition, a misdemeanor would be created for someone who drives after their driver’s license has been suspended, revoked or cancelled for a DWI. The new offense would not replace the crime of driving with a cancelled license because the person’s operation of a motor vehicle would be adverse to public safety.

For Fiscal Year 2019, the bill would provide $618,000 to district courts for costs associated with increased ignition interlock implementation and $135,000 would be reallocated within the Department of Public Safety.

The bill would prohibit suspension of a person’s driver’s license in specific situations, including failure to appear in court in compliance with the terms of a citation for a petty misdemeanor or the person failed to pay a traffic ticket, parking fine or surcharge.

To help fund the peace officer training account, a tweak to the disbursement of surcharges on criminal and traffic offenders is called for with 2 percent more going to training and 2 percent less to the General Fund.

A school bus driver’s endorsement would be cancelled for a person who receives a stay of adjudication for a disqualifying offense, including driving while impaired.

 

Criminal/corrections policy

This bill would expand the criminal vehicular homicide and criminal vehicular operation crimes to include when someone negligently operates a motor vehicle while operating a cell phone or other electronic device other than in a hands-free mode and causes death or bodily harm to another person.

The penalty for inflicting demonstrable bodily harm while assaulting a peace officer would increase from a gross misdemeanor to a felony. In addition, criminal penalties would be enhanced for assaulting firefighters or medical personnel.

The bill takes aim at inappropriate sexual conduct, including provisions that would:

  • require a judge to justify in writing a stay of adjudication for felony criminal sexual conduct offenses, and such records would be made available online;
  • require predatory offender registration for persons who receive stays of adjudication for sex offenses;
  • create felony-level criminal sexual conduct offenses for school employees and independent contractors who engage in certain inappropriate relationships with students between the ages of 16-21;
  • make an adult who was in a position of authority over a 16- or 17-year-old within the past 120 days subject to criminal penalties for having a sexual relationship with the juvenile;
  • extend the definition of position of authority to cases where an adult “assumed” authority over a victim;
  • establish an intensive probation program for all felony sex offenders who are not committed to the commissioner of corrections following their convictions;
  • require a 25-year conditional release term for people convicted of felony sexual misconduct who are committed to the Corrections Department;
  • increase the fine from $500 to $750 for first-time patrons of prostitution and create a felony penalty for someone convicted of patronizing a prostitute within 10 years of a prior conviction;
  • make it illegal under Minnesota’s fifth-degree criminal sexual conduct code to intentionally touch the clothing area over someone’s buttocks; and
  • prohibit a peace officer from sexually penetrating or sexually contacting a person who is restrained by the peace officer or does not reasonably feel free to leave the officer’s presence.

 

Court provisions

The bill would require the express consent of the defendant and the victim in order to record or broadcast any criminal matter, including a trial, hearing, motion or argument. This prohibition would apply to the use of television, radio, audio, photographic or other recording equipment with exceptions to equipment approved by the court for purposes of making the court record.

Other proposed changes would:

  • reduce the plaintiff’s filing fee to renew a judgment on a consumer credit transaction from $285 to $40;
  • provide that in most circumstances, an action to declare non-paternity must be brought within three years of when a person believes the father listed on the recognition of parentage is not the child’s father;
  • make technical changes to “McKenna’s Law” that requires children be notified of their right to counsel in cases where a petition alleges that a child is in need of protection or services;
  • modify the definition of an “exonerated person” and address which individuals are eligible for compensation following exoneration; and
  • exempt location-tracking warrants from the general filing, sealing and reporting requirements that apply to warrants regarding the interception of a wire, electronic or oral communication.

 

Guns

The lone gun-related bill would prohibit a local unit of government from disarming peace officers who are in good standing and not currently under investigation or subject to disciplinary action.

 

What’s in the bill?

The following are selected bills that have been incorporated in part or whole into the omnibus public safety and security finance bill:

 


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