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Judiciary Committee amends and advances bill to seal case and warrant information in criminal and juvenile matters
Summary
Committee members amended Senate Bill 204 to include return of service envelopes for subpoenas and passed the bill favorably for passage.
The Committee on Judiciary amended Senate Bill 204 and voted to pass it favorably for passage. Jason Thompson of the Revisor’s Office described the bill as requiring case and warrant information to be sealed in criminal and juvenile offender cases and amending the civil statute on sealing or redacting court records so that subpoenas, cases where arrest warrants are sought, and similar documents would be sealed by the court.
Rep. Williams offered an amendment to clarify that return‑of‑service envelopes for subpoenas also be included in the sealing language to address concerns about neutral testimony. Proponents accepted the change, Rep. Williams said, and Rep. Bojai seconded the amendment. The committee approved the amendment on voice vote; committee members then voted to pass SB204 as amended favorably for passage. Rep. Carmichael asked to have his “yes” vote recorded in the minutes.
Why it matters: proponents said sealing subpoenas and related service materials reduces risks to witnesses and neutral third parties in criminal and juvenile matters. The bill changes how courts and clerks treat a subset of documents in criminal and juvenile cases.
Action taken: Committee adopted the amendment and approved SB204 favorably for passage. The committee record does not include a roll‑call tally for the final vote.
