2014 -- S 2708

========

LC003478

========

     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2014

____________

A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE - ARREST

     Introduced By: Senators Jabour, Lombardi, and Lombardo

     Date Introduced: March 05, 2014

     Referred To: Senate Judiciary

     (Public Defender)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 12-7-22 of the General Laws in Chapter 12-7 entitled "Arrest" is

hereby amended to read as follows:

     12-7-22. Electronic recording of custodial interrogations task force. -- (a) In order to:

      (1) Minimize the likelihood of a wrongful conviction caused by a false confession; and

      (2) Further improve the already high quality of criminal justice in our state, the general

assembly creates a taskforce to investigate and develop policies and procedures for electronically

recording custodial interrogations in their entirety.

      (b) The task force shall be comprised of the following or their designees:

      (1) Attorney general;

      (2) Public defender;

      (3) Superintendent of the Rhode Island state police;

      (4) President of the Rhode Island pPolice cChiefs' aAssociation;

      (5) Head of the municipal police training academy;

      (6) President of the Rhode Island bBar aAssociation;

      (7) President of the Rhode Island aAssociation of cCriminal dDefense lLawyers;

      (8) Public safety commissioner of the city of Providence;

      (9) Chief of police of a department with less than forty-five (45) sworn officers and

which that does not currently have an established policy concerning the electronic recording of

custodial interrogations, to be agreed upon by the task force;

      (10) Chief of police of a department (other than one separately designated herein) that

already has established a policy concerning the regular, electronic recording of custodial

interrogations, to be agreed upon by the task force; and

      (11) Executive director of the Rhode Island commission for human rights.

      (c) The attorney general and public defender shall serve as co-chairpersons of the task

force and have the authority to call for and designate the time and place of meetings. A majority

of members shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold meetings. The task force

shall act only on an affirmative vote of a majority of those voting. All departments and agencies

of the state shall furnish such advice and information, documentary and otherwise, to said the task

force and its agents as is deemed necessary or desirable by the task force to facilitate the purposes

of this section.

      (d) The task force, in consultation with whatever experts it may deem appropriate, shall

study and make recommendations concerning the establishment of a statewide law enforcement

practice of electronically recording custodial interrogations in their entirety. In so doing, the task

force shall consider, but not be limited to, the following:

      (1) Models from other federal and state jurisdictions;

      (2) Current policies, procedures, and practices of law enforcement statewide;

      (3) Types of crimes, investigations, and settings where custodial interrogations should be

electronically recorded;

      (4) Whether custodial interrogations should be electronically recorded using audio-visual

or strictly audio recording;

      (5) Whether custodial interrogations should be electronically recorded with or without

the knowledge of the suspect;

      (6) Appropriate procedures to be followed when the suspect refuses to be, or exigent

circumstances otherwise prevent, the electronic recording of the custodial interrogation;

      (7) How to most effectively record interrogations in view of an individual police

department's fiscal, staffing, and space constraints;

      (8) Appropriate policies and procedures concerning the transcription of the electronic

recordings resulting from custodial interrogation;

      (9) Appropriate policies and procedures concerning the long-term preservation and

storage of the electronic recordings resulting from custodial interrogation; and

      (10) The desirability of written policies, procedures, training, and/or additional

legislation regarding the electronic recording of custodial interrogations in their entirety

statewide.

LC003478 - Page 2 of 4

      (e) The task force shall submit a report on its recommendations concerning the

investigation and development of policies and procedures for electronically recording custodial

interrogations in their entirety. This report shall be presented to the governor, the chief justice of

the Rhode Island supreme court, the speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the

senate, and the chairpersons of the judiciary committees of both the house of representatives and

the senate no later than February 1, 2012. Thereafter, the task force shall meet periodically in

order to assess the impact of the recommendations it has made; conduct further research in the

area of the electronic recording of custodial interrogations; assess the implementation of written

policies in these areas by Rhode Island law enforcement agencies; and determine whether or not

any additional legislation regarding the electronic recording of custodial interrogations in their

entirety statewide is required. Said meetings shall be called by agreement of the attorney general

and public defender. A supplemental report from the task force shall be delivered in the same

manner as its initial report and not later than December 31, 2013 December 31, 2014.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

========

LC003478

========

LC003478 - Page 3 of 4

EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE - ARREST

***

     This act would extend the deadline for which the electronic recording of custodial

interrogations task force may provide its supplemental report.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

========

LC003478

========

LC003478 - Page 4 of 4