Law & Justice Committee advances three criminal-justice bills ahead of policy cutoff

The Senate Law & Justice Committee on Feb. 20 advanced three bills addressing criminal-justice procedures and professional conduct, voting to send each to the next committee in the process with recommendations.

The bills were: Senate Bill 5,290 (dismissal of certain possession charges after completion of substance use disorder treatment); Senate Bill 5,745 (clarifications to appointed counsel for people detained under the Involuntary Treatment Act); and Senate Bill 5,714 (declaring certain civil immigration enforcement actions by bail-bond agents unprofessional conduct).

Nut graf: The measures would change pretrial handling of low-level possession cases, clarify which state facilities the Attorney General represents under the ITA and restrict bail-bond agents from enforcing civil immigration laws or disclosing immigration status. Committee action moves the measures forward before the policy cutoff and, for the ITA bill, into the fiscal review process.

Joe McKittrick, staff counsel to the committee, introduced the first bill: “The first bill before you today is Senate Bill 5,290, which permits, individuals who complete substance use disorder treatment to seek dismissal of certain controlled substance related charges.” The committee considered a substitute (alpha) and an amendment (alpha 1). The substitute created an intent section, allowed persons charged in courts of limited jurisdiction to seek dismissal after showing proof of successful completion of court-approved treatment, and required courts to state written reasons on the record when dismissing charges. The substitute also permitted courts to dismiss other non-possession charges filed under the same cause number unless the prosecutor objected. Amendment alpha 1 would bar dismissal of possession charges when the prosecutor objects; Senator Holy offered the amendment and explained it sought to restore prosecutorial objection authority for non-possession collateral charges.

Senator Hooley raised constitutional concerns about the substitute, arguing it could impinge on prosecutorial discretion in pretrial proceedings and citing precedent in the course of the committee discussion. Hooley said the substitute had addressed much of the concern but that issues around separation of powers remained part of the debate. After discussion, the committee voted to recommend the proposed substitute for SB 5,290 and to send it to the Rules Committee with a due-pass recommendation, subject to signatures.

Ryan Giannini, staff counsel, introduced Senate Bill 5,745 as relating to appointed counsel for persons detained under the Involuntary Treatment Act. Giannini described an amendment (bravo) clarifying that the Attorney General shall represent all facilities owned or operated by the Department of Social and Health Services that provide inpatient services under the ITA, including a facility referenced in public testimony. Senator Hooley and others raised fiscal and implementation questions: Senator Hooley noted concerns about funding and the existing model in which behavioral-health budget lines have been used to pay for civil-commitment legal services; Senator Wagner said she would vote yes but noted uncertainty on costs and the need for additional information. The committee adopted the bravo amendment and rolled it into a proposed substitute; the substitute received a due-pass recommendation and was sent to the Ways and Means Committee for fiscal review, subject to signatures.

Finally, the committee considered Senate Bill 5,714, a measure that would make it unprofessional conduct for bail bond agents and bail-bond recovery agents to enforce civil immigration law or to disclose a defendant’s immigration status outside the bail bond agency. The committee adopted an amendment (Charlie 1) that amended the bill title, rolled it into a new proposed substitute and recommended it pass to the Rules Committee with a due-pass recommendation, subject to signatures.

Votes at a glance: The transcript records voice votes for committee action on all three bills; each was recommended to advance. The committee recorded “aye” and “nay” voice responses but did not provide roll-call tallies in the transcript provided here. The record shows: proposed substitute SB 5,290 — due-pass to Rules (subject to signatures); proposed substitute SB 5,745 — due-pass to Ways & Means (subject to signatures); proposed substitute SB 5,714 — due-pass to Rules (subject to signatures).

Ending: Committee staff said the measures will be referred to the next committees (Ways & Means or Rules) for further consideration. The committee adjourned its executive session portion of the hearing and proceeded with gubernatorial appointment hearings and confirmations later the same day.