| Chapter 153 |
| 2015 -- H 6072 Enacted 07/02/2015 |
| A N A C T |
| RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE - POST CONVICTION REMEDY |
| Introduced By: Representatives Maldonado, Keable, Regunberg, Fogarty, and Diaz |
| Date Introduced: April 15, 2015 |
| It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
| SECTION 1. Section 10-9.1-11 of the General Laws in Chapter 10-9.1 entitled "Post |
| Conviction Remedy" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 10-9.1-11. Innocence protection -- Mandatory preservation of biological evidence. -- |
| (a) Mandatory preservation. - During the term of the defendant's incarceration resulting from his |
| or her conviction after trial, the Rhode Island state police and each and every municipal police |
| department in the state of Rhode Island, their agents, and any person to whom biological evidence |
| has been transferred shall be obligated to preserve all biological evidence that comes into its |
| possession during the course of a criminal investigation. |
| (b) Petition to destroy evidence. - A police department or agent may be relieved of the |
| obligation of mandatory preservation by applying to a justice of the superior court for permission |
| to destroy biological evidence. Upon receipt of the petition, a justice of the superior court shall |
| hold a hearing, and after giving notice to all defendants charged in connection with the |
| prosecution, the justice shall grant the petition upon finding that: |
| (1) The Rhode Island Supreme Court has decided the defendant's appeal; and |
| (2) The defendant does not seek further preservation of the biological evidence. |
| (c) Petition by defendant requesting testing. - Notwithstanding any other provision of |
| law governing postconviction relief, any person who was convicted of and sentenced for a crime |
| and who is currently serving an actual term of imprisonment and incarceration pursuant to that |
| sentence may, at any time, file a petition with the superior court requesting the forensic DNA |
| testing of any evidence that is in the possession or control of the prosecution, law enforcement, |
| laboratory, or court. A person filing a petition under this section must certify under the pains and |
| penalties of perjury that the requested testing is related to the investigation or prosecution that |
| resulted in the judgment of conviction and that the evidence sought to be tested contains |
| biological evidence. |
| SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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| LC002384 |
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