Judiciary hears outline for S.193 forensic-facility feasibility plan, debates who it should serve and who would run it

The Judiciary Committee on May 7 reviewed a consolidated draft of S.193 that would require the secretary to deliver a feasibility plan for creating a standalone forensic facility, and members spent the meeting disputing how narrowly the facility's population should be defined and which state agencies should operate or provide security for it.

Katie McLean of the Office of Legislative Counsel told the committee the integrated draft combines changes from Corrections and Institutions, Human Services and Health Care and adds a new legislative-intent section. "It is the intent that DOC shall not operate, or staff a forensic facility, with the exception that employees of DOC may provide security to the outside perimeter of a forensic facility if it's co-located on the grounds of a correctional facility," McLean said while summarizing the draft.

The draft defines a forensic facility to provide a continuum of services including competency restoration, evaluation, stabilization, treatment and care. It also lists required elements for the feasibility plan the secretary must deliver: a proposed location (independent of a correctional facility, or sight-and-sound separated if on the same grounds), proposed design that can separate residents by gender and clinical need, bed counts, the entity or entities responsible for operation (the draft currently says DOC shall not be the operator), construction and operating cost estimates, staffing levels and qualifications, a…