Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Magistrate Findings Probable Cause topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate committee backs bill requiring written findings when magistrates rule no probable cause
Summary
The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice voted 6–1 to report Senate Bill 3073 to the full Senate. The bill would require magistrates who determine no probable cause exists for an arrest to enter written findings on the record explaining that determination.
The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice voted 6–1 to report Senate Bill 3073 to the full Senate with a favorable recommendation. Sponsor Senator Huffman told members the bill requires magistrates who find no probable cause to enter written findings in the record explaining that determination.
Why it matters: Committee supporters said the change increases transparency and gives prosecutors and law-enforcement personnel clarity when magistrates decline to find probable cause; opponents raised concerns tied to one recorded nay vote.
Senator Huffman said his office received reports that magistrates in some instances have “indiscriminately” made no-probable-cause determinations without explaining the basis. SB 3073 would not change the magistrate’s discretion to make a probable-cause finding, he said, but would require that a written record explain why the magistrate concluded probable cause did not exist. “If they're gonna deny a probable cause, they just put it in writing,” Huffman told the committee.
The committee recorded one dissenting vote from Senator Miles; the roll call produced six ayes and one nay. There were no invited or public witnesses registered for SB 3073 at the committee hearing, and the chair closed public testimony before the vote.
The bill will proceed to the Senate floor for further consideration.
