2016 -- S 2936

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LC005568

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2016

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO CORRECTIONS - BATTERERS INTERVENTION PROGRAMS AND

PROBATION SUPERVISION

     

     Introduced By: Senators McCaffrey, Nesselbush, Coyne, Metts, and Goodwin

     Date Introduced: May 03, 2016

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 12-29-5.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 12-29 entitled "Domestic

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Violence Prevention Act" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     12-29-5.2. Duties and responsibilities of committee. -- (a) The committee shall have the

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duties and responsibilities to:

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      (1) Establish and promulgate minimum standards for batterers intervention programs

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serving persons mandated pursuant to § 12-29-5, revise the standards as is deemed necessary,

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ensure the standards comport with evidence-informed practices designed to reduce risk, and make

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the standards available to the public, provided that the standards shall include, but not be limited

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to, the following:

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      (i) Batterers intervention programs shall be conducted using evidence-informed

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programming and dosage levels designed to reduce the risk of future violent behavior in the

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context of psycho-educational groups, i.e., groups of domestic violence perpetrators led by one or

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more professional group leaders trained and experienced in batterers intervention programming

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and conducted for the purposes of learning and enacting non-abusive behaviors through didactic

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instruction, interaction among participants and leaders, and teaching of skills within the groups;

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      (ii) The duration of batterers intervention programs shall be a minimum of forty (40)

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contact hours over the course of twenty (20) weeks;

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      (iii) Batterers intervention programs shall require that all mandated batterers pay fees for

 

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the programs in accordance with the provisions of § 12-29-5; provided, that programs shall

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accommodate varying levels of ability to pay by means of sliding fee scales and may elect to

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offer alternatives to payment in the form of community restitution and/or deferred payment for a

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portion of the fees; and

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      (iv) Provisions shall be established defining the circumstances under which defendants

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who have attended a batterers program while incarcerated, and/or a batterers program in another

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jurisdiction which is certified under that jurisdiction's standards or not subject to standards in that

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jurisdiction, may request that their documented participation in such program be accepted in

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satisfaction of some portion of their obligation to attend forty (40) hours of a certified batterers

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intervention program as described in subdivision 12-29-5.2(a)(1)(ii).

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      (2) Monitor and review batterers intervention programs seeking certification with respect

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to compliance with the standards, including periodic on-site review;

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      (3) Certify those batterers intervention programs which are in compliance with the

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standards established pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection; and

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      (4) Investigate and decide appeals, complaints, requests for variances, and post-

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enrollment certification applications.

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      (b) For purposes of this chapter, "post-enrollment certification applications" means those

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applications made to the committee by a batterer mandated to attend a certified batterers

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intervention program in accordance with § 12-29-5 who has, prior to adjudication, enrolled in a

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program not certified by the committee. The application shall include supporting documentation

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from the batterers intervention program and a request that participation in the batterers

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intervention program be accepted in lieu of the equivalent number of hours of a certified batterers

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intervention program. The committee shall act upon a post-enrollment certification application

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within thirty (30) days of receipt of the application.

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     (c) There is hereby created a batterer's intervention program fund to be administered by

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the State Public Safety Grant Administration Office. The fund shall consist of monies

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appropriated for the purposes of providing access to, and expansion and improvement of,

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community-based batterers' intervention programs. The batterer's intervention standards oversight

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committee shall make recommendations to the Public Safety Grant Administration Policy Board

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regarding the distribution of the monies in the fund in the form of grants to programs to cover the

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costs of delivering quality services to indigent offenders, and to assist community providers and

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their staffs to utilize outcome-based best practices and effective programming methods.

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     SECTION 2. Sections 42-56-1 and 42-56-7 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-56

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entitled "Corrections Department" are hereby amended to read as follows:

 

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     42-56-1. Declaration of policy. -- (a) The legislature finds and declares that:

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      (1) The state has a basic obligation to protect the public by providing institutional

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confinement and care of offenders and, evidence-based probation and parole supervision and

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where appropriate, treatment in the community;

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      (2) Efforts to rehabilitate and restore criminal offenders as law-abiding and productive

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members of society are essential to the reduction of crime;

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      (3) Upgrading of Maintaining the quality and effectiveness of correctional institutions

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and rehabilitative services, both inside and outside correctional institutions, deserves priority

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consideration as a means of lowering crime rates and of preventing offenders, particularly youths,

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first-offenders, and misdemeanants, from becoming trapped in careers of crime; and

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      (4) Correctional institutions, supervision and services should be so diversified in

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program and personnel as to facilitate individualized treatment.

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      (b) The purpose of this chapter is to establish a department of state government to

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provide for the, supervision, custody, care, discipline, training, and treatment, and study of

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persons committed to state correctional institutions or on probation or parole, so that those

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persons may be prepared for release, aftercare, and supervision in the community.

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     42-56-7. Parole and probation. -- (a) Authority. The division of rehabilitative services,

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subject to the authority of the director, shall perform the functions relating to the parole and

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probation of adults as prescribed by this chapter and chapters 18 and 19 of title 12, and under

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those rules and regulations adopted by the director of corrections with the approval of the

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governor and the parole board in the executive department.

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     (b) Assessments. The division of rehabilitative services shall adopt risk and needs screens

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and assessments and behavioral health assessments that are validated at least once every five (5)

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years for the purpose of informing the following decisions:

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     (1) Probation supervision intensity, case management, and treatment objectives, adopted

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in collaboration with the superior courts;

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     (2) Correctional treatment and classification; and

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     (3) Parole supervision intensity, case management, and treatment objectives, adopted in

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collaboration with the parole board, and parole release decisions, adopted in collaboration with,

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and for implementation by, the parole board.

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     (c) Special conditions. The assessment implemented under §42-56-7(b)(1) should be

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performed prior to placement on probation, whenever possible, to support judicial decisions

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affecting conditions of supervision under §12-19-8.1.

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     (d) Supervision. The division of rehabilitative services shall:

 

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     (1) Provide limited supervision for probationers who qualify based on offense level, time

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under supervision without a violation, and the results from a validated risk and needs assessment;

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     (2) Provide high-intensity supervision and treatment for probationers who, based on

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screening and assessments, are high risk to re-offend and present high needs for behavioral health

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services;

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     (3) Collaborate with the executive office of health and human services to implement

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Medicaid payment incentives designed to ensure timely access to quality behavioral health

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treatment and cognitive-behavioral programs for probationers; and

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     (4) Require that program providers serving probationers pursuant to a contract with the

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department use cognitive-behavioral programs to reduce criminal thinking.

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     (e) Behavioral change guidelines. The division of rehabilitative services shall adopt

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guidelines for probation and parole officers, governing:

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     (1) Incentives for compliance and pro-social behaviors; and

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     (2) Swift, certain and proportionate non-confinement sanctions in response to

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corresponding violations of probation conditions.

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     (f) Training. The division of rehabilitative services shall organize and conduct evidence-

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based training programs for probation and parole officers. The training shall include:

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     (1) Scoring and use of validated risk and needs assessments under subsection (b) of this

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section;

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     (2) Risk-based supervision strategies;

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     (3) Cognitive behavioral interventions;

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     (4) Targeting criminal risk factors to reduce recidivism;

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     (5) Use of incentives for compliance and pro-social behaviors;

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     (6) Use of and swift, certain and proportionate non-confinement sanctions in response to

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corresponding violations of probation conditions pursuant to subsection (d)(2) of this section;

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     (7) Recognizing symptoms of substance use and mental health needs and making

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treatment referrals; and

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     (8) De-escalating erratic criminal behavior.

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     (g) All probation and parole officers employed on or after the effective date of this act

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shall complete the training requirements set forth in this section. Selected probation and parole

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officers shall become trainers to ensure sustainability of these training requirements.

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     (h) Information. The division of rehabilitative services shall develop or adopt an

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automated case management and reporting system for probation and parole officers.

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     (i) Implementation. Deadlines for implementation of this section by the department of

 

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corrections shall be as follows: subsection (b) (initial assessment validation), subsection (c)

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(special condition recommendations), subsection (d) (supervision intensity), and subsection (f)

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(for training of existing probation and parole officers); one year from the effective date of this

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section; subsection (e) (behavior change guidelines); six (6) months from the effective date;

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subsection (f) (for training of new probation and parole officers) and subsection (g) (case

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management system); two (2) years from the effective date.

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     SECTION 3. Chapter 42-18 of the General Laws entitled "Department of Health," is

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hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

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     42-18-7. Cooperation with the department of corrections. -- The director of the

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department of health shall coordinate and cooperate with the director of the department of

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corrections to ensure collaboration around existing department of health programs and initiatives,

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with regard to people under the care of the department of corrections, on probation, during

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incarceration, and upon release to the community.

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     SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO CORRECTIONS - BATTERERS INTERVENTION PROGRAMS AND

PROBATION SUPERVISION

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     This act would create a batterer's intervention program fund. The act would also adopt

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evidence-based probation and parole supervision systems.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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