Report Title:

Sex Offender; Registration; Website

Description:

Clarifies the manner and extent of public access to registration information; and the procedure for terminating public release of sex offender registration information.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

974

TWENTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2005

  

STATE OF HAWAII

  

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

relating to sex offender registration.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. Section 846E-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§846E-3 Access to registration information. (a) Registration information shall be disclosed as follows:

(1) The information shall be disclosed to law enforcement agencies for law enforcement purposes;

(2) The information shall be disclosed to government agencies conducting confidential background checks;

(3) The attorney general and any county police department shall [release] disclose relevant information that is necessary to protect the public concerning a specific person required to register under this chapter; provided that the identity of a victim of an offense that requires registration under this chapter shall not be released[.]; and

(4) No registration information shall be disclosed relating to a sex offender subject to registration under section 846E-2 solely due to the offender's conviction of a single misdemeanor sexual offense.

(b) For purposes of this section, "relevant information that is necessary to protect the public" means:

(1) Name and all aliases used by the sex offender or under which the sex offender has been known;

(2) The actual address where the sex offender resides and how long the sex offender has resided there;

(3) The actual address where the sex offender is staying for more than ten days, if other than the stated residence;

(4) The future actual address, if known, where the sex offender is planning to reside, if other than the stated residence;

(5) The actual addresses of the sex offender's current locations of employment;

(6) Names and legal addresses of current and known future educational institutions with which the sex offender is affiliated as a faculty member, an employee, or a student, and the starting and ending dates of any such affiliation;

(7) The year, make, model, color, and license number of all vehicles currently owned or operated by the sex offender;

(8) A brief summary of the criminal offenses against victims who were minors and the sexually violent offenses for which the sex offender has been convicted or found unfit to proceed or acquitted pursuant to chapter 704; and

(9) A recent photograph of the sex offender.

(c) Relevant information that is necessary to protect the public shall be collected for purposes of making it available to the general public, and, except as provided in subsection (a)(4), a sex offender shall have a diminished expectation of privacy in the information.

[(d) Prior to public release of a sex offender's relevant information under subsection (f), the State shall petition the court, in a civil proceeding, for an order permitting its release. The petition shall be filed with the court in which the offense was prosecuted, or, in the case where the offense did not occur in the State, in the circuit of the sex offender's residence with the court for which jurisdiction would be proper had the offense occurred in this State. The State shall be represented by the prosecuting attorney for the county where the hearing is held. The State shall have the burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the sex offender is required to register under this chapter. Proof by the State shall give rise to a presumption that public release of relevant information is necessary to protect the public. The sex offender shall be given the opportunity to present evidence to rebut the presumption and to show that the offender does not represent a threat to the community and that public release of relevant information is not necessary.

If the court determines that public release of relevant information is necessary to protect the public, the court shall issue an order for the release. The order shall set the time duration of public release of relevant information, which shall be for a minimum period of ten years, unless any factor listed in paragraph (2), (4), (5), or (6) applies. If any of these factors apply, then the time duration of the public release shall be for the life of the sex offender; provided that upon petition by the sex offender, the court may modify its order for lifetime public release upon a showing, by clear and convincing evidence, that the sex offender suffers an extraordinary physical disability that prevents the offender from committing future sexual offenses.

The court in making its determination shall consider the following factors:

(1) The offense involved the death or serious bodily injury of another person;

(2) The offense resulted in sentencing under the terms of section 706-606.5, 706-660.2, or 706-661;

(3) The offender has inexcusably failed to comply with terms and conditions of probation or parole;

(4) The victim was twelve years of age or younger at the time of the offense;

(5) The offender either prior to or subsequent to the offense requiring registration under this chapter, has been convicted, found unfit to proceed, or acquitted due to a physical or mental disease, disorder, or defect, of a sexual offense or an offense against children, including all offenses occurring in other jurisdictions;

(6) The offender has been convicted, found unfit to proceed, or acquitted due to a physical or mental disease, disorder, or defect, of a sexual assault as defined in section 707-730(1)(a) or an offense that is comparable in another jurisdiction;

(7) The offender has inexcusably failed to register as a sex offender or is otherwise not in compliance with this chapter; and

(8) The offender has been convicted of any crime since the conviction requiring the offender's registration.

(e) Subsections (d) and (f) shall not apply to offenders who have been convicted of a single misdemeanor sexual offense. Offenders convicted of multiple sexual offenses shall be subject to subsections (d) and (f).

(f)] (d) The [release] disclosure of relevant information that is necessary to protect the public shall be accomplished by public access to a file containing the relevant information on each registered sex offender, a copy of which shall be provided for inspection upon request at the Hawaii criminal justice data center and at one or more designated police stations in each county, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on weekdays excluding holidays. The chief of police and the attorney general shall provide the relevant information on sex offenders upon payment of reasonable fees. Public access to relevant information that is necessary to protect the public also shall be accomplished by posting the information on the sex offender registration information website of the Hawaii criminal justice data center. Relevant information on each registered sex offender may also be released from an electronic database maintained by the respective law enforcement agencies that is accessible to users through an interactive computer-based system.

(e) No earlier than ten years after the relevant information has been made available to the general public, a sex offender may petition the court, in a civil proceeding, for an order to terminate public access to the sex offender registration information relating to the offender. The petition shall be filed with the court in which the offense was prosecuted or, in the case where the offense did not occur in the State, in the circuit of the sex offender's residence with the court for which jurisdiction would be proper had the offense occurred in this State. The State shall be represented by the prosecuting attorney for the county where the hearing is held. The State shall have the burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, that continued public access to the relevant information relating to the sex offender is necessary to protect the public. The sex offender shall be given the opportunity to present evidence to show that the offender does not represent a threat to the community and that continued public disclosure of relevant information is not necessary.

If the court determines that continued public disclosure of relevant information is not necessary to protect the public, the court shall issue an order for the termination of public access. The court may terminate public disclosure upon a showing, by clear and convincing evidence, that the sex offender suffers an extraordinary physical disability that prevents the offender from committing future sexual offenses; provided, however, a finding of extraordinary physical disability is not required for a court to enter an order to terminate public, disclosure of registration information.

The court in making its determination to terminate public disclosure of registration information shall consider the following factors:

(1) The original offense involved the death or serious bodily injury of another person;

(2) The original offense resulted in sentencing under the terms of section 706-606.5, 706-660.2, or 706-661;

(3) The offender has inexcusably failed to comply with terms and conditions of probation or parole;

(4) The victim was twelve years of age or younger at the time of the offense;

(5) The offender, subsequent to the offense requiring registration under this chapter, has been convicted, found unfit to proceed, or acquitted due to a physical or mental disease, disorder, or defect, of a subsequent sexual offense or a subsequent offense against children, including all offenses occurring in other jurisdictions;

(6) The offender has been convicted, found unfit to proceed, or acquitted due to a physical or mental disease, disorder, or defect, of a subsequent sexual assault as defined in section 707-730(1)(a) or a subsequent offense that is comparable in another jurisdiction;

(7) The offender has inexcusably failed to register as a sex offender or is otherwise not in compliance with this chapter; and

(8) The offender has been convicted of any crime since the conviction requiring the offender's registration."

SECTION 2. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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