| 1 | 1 | | 25 LC 49 2097 |
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| 2 | 2 | | Senate Bill 48 |
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| 3 | 3 | | By: Senators Parent of the 44th, Jones II of the 22nd and Jackson of the 41st |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | To amend Code Section 35-3-34 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to |
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| 7 | 7 | | 1 |
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| 8 | 8 | | disclosure and dissemination of criminal records to private persons and businesses, resulting2 |
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| 9 | 9 | | responsibility and liability of the issuing center, and provision of certain information to the3 |
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| 10 | 10 | | FBI in conjunction with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, so as to4 |
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| 11 | 11 | | provide for a judicial procedure for purging a person's involuntary hospitalization5 |
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| 12 | 12 | | information received by the center for the purpose of the National Instant Criminal6 |
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| 13 | 13 | | Background Check System under certain circumstances; to change provisions relating to the7 |
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| 14 | 14 | | retention of a person's involuntary hospitalization information; to provide for related matters;8 |
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| 15 | 15 | | to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.9 |
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| 16 | 16 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:10 |
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| 17 | 17 | | SECTION 1.11 |
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| 18 | 18 | | Code Section 35-3-34 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to disclosure and12 |
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| 19 | 19 | | dissemination of criminal records to private persons and businesses, resulting responsibility13 |
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| 20 | 20 | | and liability of the issuing center, and provision of certain information to the FBI in14 |
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| 21 | 21 | | conjunction with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, is amended by15 |
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| 22 | 22 | | revising paragraph (2) of subsection (e) as follows:16 |
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| 23 | 23 | | S. B. 48 |
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| 24 | 24 | | - 1 - 25 LC 49 2097 |
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| 25 | 25 | | "(2)(A) The records of the Georgia Crime Information Center center shall include17 |
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| 26 | 26 | | information as to whether a person has been involuntarily hospitalized. 18 |
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| 27 | 27 | | Notwithstanding any other provisions of law and in order to carry out the provisions of19 |
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| 28 | 28 | | this Code section and Code Section 16-11-172, the Georgia Crime Information Center20 |
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| 29 | 29 | | center shall be provided such information and no other mental health information from21 |
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| 30 | 30 | | the involuntary hospitalization records of the probate courts concerning persons22 |
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| 31 | 31 | | involuntarily hospitalized after March 22, 1995, in a manner agreed upon by the23 |
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| 32 | 32 | | Probate Judges Training Council and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation The Council24 |
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| 33 | 33 | | of Probate Court Judges of Georgia and the bureau to preserve the confidentiality of25 |
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| 34 | 34 | | patients' rights in all other respects. Further, notwithstanding any other provisions of26 |
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| 35 | 35 | | law and in order to carry out the provisions of this Code section and Code Section27 |
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| 36 | 36 | | 16-11-172, the center shall be provided information as to whether a person has been28 |
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| 37 | 37 | | adjudicated mentally incompetent to stand trial or not guilty by reason of insanity at the29 |
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| 38 | 38 | | time of the crime, has been involuntarily hospitalized, or both, from the records of the30 |
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| 39 | 39 | | clerks of the superior courts concerning persons involuntarily hospitalized after March31 |
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| 40 | 40 | | 22, 1995, in a manner agreed upon by The Council of Superior Court Clerks of Georgia32 |
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| 41 | 41 | | and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation bureau to preserve the confidentiality of33 |
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| 42 | 42 | | patients' rights in all other respects. After five years have elapsed from the date that a34 |
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| 43 | 43 | | person's involuntary hospitalization information has been received by the Georgia35 |
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| 44 | 44 | | Crime Information Center, the center shall purge its records of such information as soon36 |
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| 45 | 45 | | as practicable and in any event purge such records within 30 days after the expiration37 |
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| 46 | 46 | | of such five-year period.38 |
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| 47 | 47 | | (B) When a person's mental health information has been submitted pursuant to39 |
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| 48 | 48 | | subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, such person may petition the court in which such40 |
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| 49 | 49 | | hospitalization proceedings occurred for relief. A copy of such petition for relief shall41 |
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| 50 | 50 | | be served upon the opposing civil party or the prosecuting attorney, as the case may be,42 |
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| 51 | 51 | | or their successors, who appeared in the underlying case. Within 60 days of the receipt43 |
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| 52 | 52 | | S. B. 48 |
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| 53 | 53 | | - 2 - 25 LC 49 2097 |
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| 54 | 54 | | of such petition, such court shall hold a hearing on such petition; provided, however,44 |
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| 55 | 55 | | that such time period may be extended for good cause as determined by the court. The45 |
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| 56 | 56 | | prosecuting attorney may represent the interests of the state at such hearing.46 |
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| 57 | 57 | | (C) At the hearing provided for under subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, the court47 |
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| 58 | 58 | | shall receive and consider evidence concerning:48 |
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| 59 | 59 | | (i) The circumstances which caused the petitioner's hospitalization;49 |
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| 60 | 60 | | (ii) The petitioner's mental health and criminal history records, if any. The court50 |
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| 61 | 61 | | shall require the petitioner to sign a waiver authorizing the record custodian of any51 |
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| 62 | 62 | | hospital where such petitioner received mental health treatment for such52 |
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| 63 | 63 | | hospitalization or any other facility or outpatient treatment center where he or she53 |
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| 64 | 64 | | received mental health treatment since such hospitalization to release such records to54 |
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| 65 | 65 | | the court. The court shall keep such hospitalization and treatment records confidential55 |
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| 66 | 66 | | to the extent possible;56 |
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| 67 | 67 | | (iii) The petitioner's reputation, which shall be established through character witness57 |
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| 68 | 68 | | statements, testimony, or other character evidence; and58 |
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| 69 | 69 | | (iv) Changes in the petitioner's condition or circumstances since such hospitalization.59 |
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| 70 | 70 | | (D)(i) The court shall issue a written order of its decision on such petition filed under60 |
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| 71 | 71 | | subparagraph (B) of this paragraph no later than 30 days after the hearing.61 |
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| 72 | 72 | | (ii) The court shall grant such petition if it finds by a preponderance of the evidence62 |
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| 73 | 73 | | that the petitioner will not likely act in a manner dangerous to himself or herself or63 |
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| 74 | 74 | | public safety and that granting the relief is otherwise consistent with the standards for64 |
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| 75 | 75 | | the issuance of a weapons carry license as provided for in subsection (b.1) of Code65 |
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| 76 | 76 | | Section 16-11-129.66 |
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| 77 | 77 | | (iii) A record shall be kept of the hearing on a petition for relief. Such record shall67 |
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| 78 | 78 | | be exempt from disclosure under Article 4 of Chapter 18 of Title 50.68 |
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| 79 | 79 | | (iv) Any appeal of the court's ruling on such petition shall be as provided for by the69 |
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| 80 | 80 | | laws governing the appeal of decisions from such court; provided, however, that any70 |
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| 81 | 81 | | S. B. 48 |
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| 82 | 82 | | - 3 - 25 LC 49 2097 |
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| 83 | 83 | | such appeal from a probate court, as defined in Code Section 15-9-120, shall be by71 |
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| 84 | 84 | | de novo investigation to the superior court, notwithstanding Code Sections 5-3-4 and72 |
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| 85 | 85 | | 5-3-5 and paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of Code Section 5-6-33.73 |
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| 86 | 86 | | (v) If the court grants such petition, the clerk of court shall report such order to the74 |
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| 87 | 87 | | center immediately, but in no case later than ten days after the date of such order, and75 |
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| 88 | 88 | | the center shall purge such record that is the subject of the order as soon as practicable76 |
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| 89 | 89 | | but not later than 30 days after receipt of such order.77 |
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| 90 | 90 | | (E) In the case of a person who is involuntarily hospitalized, such person shall not be78 |
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| 91 | 91 | | entitled to petition for relief prior to being discharged from such hospitalization. A79 |
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| 92 | 92 | | person's first petition for relief may be filed only after the expiration of 12 months from80 |
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| 93 | 93 | | the date of such person's discharge from involuntary hospitalization. No petition for81 |
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| 94 | 94 | | relief may be filed within a period of two years from the date of the final order on a82 |
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| 95 | 95 | | previous petition for relief.83 |
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| 96 | 96 | | (F) Information received by a prosecuting attorney pursuant to this paragraph shall not84 |
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| 97 | 97 | | be used against the petitioner in any other case or context unless such information is85 |
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| 98 | 98 | | obtained in such other case or context by other rules of evidence or discovery."86 |
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| 99 | 99 | | SECTION 2.87 |
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| 100 | 100 | | All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.88 |
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| 101 | 101 | | S. B. 48 |
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| 102 | 102 | | - 4 - |
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