KS
Kansas Senate Bill SB187

Kansas 2023-2024 Regular Session

Kansas Senate Bill SB187 Compare Versions

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11 Session of 2023
22 SENATE BILL No. 187
33 By Senator Haley
44 2-7
55 AN ACT concerning civil actions; relating to actions for wrongful
66 conviction and imprisonment; providing for payment of interest;
77 directing the attorney general to file certain collateral actions;
88 amending K.S.A. 2022 Supp. 60-5004 and repealing the existing
99 section.
1010 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
1111 Section 1. K.S.A. 2022 Supp. 60-5004 is hereby amended to read as
1212 follows: 60-5004. (a) As used in this section, "claimant" means a person
1313 convicted and subsequently imprisoned for one or more crimes that such
1414 person did not commit.
1515 (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, a claimant may
1616 bring an action in the district court seeking damages from the state
1717 pursuant to this section.
1818 (c) (1) The claimant shall establish the following by a preponderance
1919 of evidence:
2020 (A) The claimant was convicted of a felony crime and subsequently
2121 imprisoned;
2222 (B) the claimant's judgment of conviction was reversed or vacated
2323 and either the charges were dismissed or on retrial the claimant was found
2424 to be not guilty;
2525 (C) the claimant did not commit the crime or crimes for which the
2626 claimant was convicted and was not an accessory or accomplice to the acts
2727 that were the basis of the conviction and resulted in a reversal or vacation
2828 of the judgment of conviction, dismissal of the charges or finding of not
2929 guilty on retrial; and
3030 (D) the claimant did not commit or suborn perjury, fabricate
3131 evidence, or by the claimant's own conduct cause or bring about the
3232 conviction. Neither a confession nor admission later found to be false or a
3333 guilty plea shall constitute committing or suborning perjury, fabricating
3434 evidence or causing or bringing about the conviction under this subsection.
3535 (2) The court, in exercising its discretion as permitted by law
3636 regarding the weight and admissibility of evidence submitted pursuant to
3737 this section, may, in the interest of justice, give due consideration to
3838 difficulties of proof caused by the passage of time, the death or
3939 unavailability of witnesses, the destruction of evidence or other factors not
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7676 caused by such persons or those acting on their behalf.
7777 (d) (1) The suit, accompanied by a statement of the facts concerning
7878 the claim for damages, verified in the manner provided for the verification
7979 of complaints in the rules of civil procedure, shall be brought by the
8080 claimant within a period of two years after the: (A) Dismissal of the
8181 criminal charges against the claimant or finding of not guilty on retrial; or
8282 (B) grant of a pardon to the claimant.
8383 (2) A claimant convicted, imprisoned and released from custody
8484 before July 1, 2018, must commence an action under this section no later
8585 than July 1, 2020.
8686 (3) All pleadings shall be captioned, "In the matter of the wrongful
8787 conviction of ________________."
8888 (4) Any claim filed pursuant to this section shall be served on the
8989 attorney general in accordance with the code of civil procedure.
9090 (5) The suit for a the claim filed pursuant to this section shall be tried
9191 by the court, and no request for a jury trial may be made pursuant to
9292 K.S.A. 60-238, and amendments thereto.
9393 (e) (1) Damages awarded under this section shall be:
9494 (A) $65,000 for each year of imprisonment, except as provided in
9595 subsection (e)(2); and
9696 (B) not less than $25,000 for each additional year served on parole or
9797 postrelease supervision or each additional year the claimant was required
9898 to register as an offender under the Kansas offender registration act,
9999 whichever is greater.
100100 (2) A claimant shall not receive compensation for any period of
101101 incarceration during which the claimant was concurrently serving a
102102 sentence for a conviction of another crime for which such claimant was
103103 lawfully incarcerated.
104104 (3) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the court shall order
105105 that the award be paid as a combination of an initial payment not to exceed
106106 $100,000 or 25% of the award, whichever is greater, and the remainder as
107107 an annuity not to exceed $80,000 per year. The claimant shall designate a
108108 beneficiary or beneficiaries for the annuity by filing such designation with
109109 the court.
110110 (B) The court may order that the award be paid in one lump sum if
111111 the court finds that it is in the best interests of the claimant.
112112 (4) In addition to the damages awarded pursuant to subsection (e)(1),
113113 the claimant:
114114 (A) Shall be entitled to receive reasonable attorney fees and costs
115115 incurred in the action brought pursuant to this section not to exceed a total
116116 of $25,000, unless a greater reasonable total is authorized by the court
117117 upon a finding of good cause shown;
118118 (B) shall be entitled to receive interest on the damages awarded
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162162 under this section from the date the suit for the claim was filed pursuant to
163163 this section at the rate provided for interest on judgments in K.S.A. 16-
164164 204, and amendments thereto;
165165 (C) may also be awarded other non-monetary relief as sought in the
166166 complaint including, but not limited to, counseling, housing assistance and
167167 personal financial literacy assistance, as appropriate;
168168 (C)(D) shall be entitled to receive tuition assistance pursuant to
169169 K.S.A. 74-32,195, and amendments thereto; and
170170 (D)(E) shall be entitled to participate in the state health care benefits
171171 program pursuant to K.S.A. 75-6501, and amendments thereto.
172172 (f) (1) If, at the time of the judgment entry referred to in subsection
173173 (e), the claimant has won a monetary award against the state or any
174174 political subdivision thereof in a civil action related to the same subject, or
175175 has entered into a settlement agreement with the state or any political
176176 subdivision thereof related to the same subject, the amount of the award in
177177 the action or the amount received in the settlement agreement, less any
178178 sums paid to attorneys or for costs in litigating the other civil action or
179179 obtaining the settlement agreement, shall be deducted from the sum of
180180 money to which the claimant is entitled under this section. The court shall
181181 include in the judgment entry an award to the state of any amount
182182 deducted pursuant to this subsection.
183183 (2) If subsection (f)(1) does not apply and if, after the time of the
184184 judgment entry referred to in subsection (e), the claimant wins a monetary
185185 award against the state or any political subdivision thereof in a civil action
186186 related to the same subject, or enters into a settlement agreement with the
187187 state or any political subdivision thereof related to the same subject, the
188188 claimant shall reimburse the state for the sum of money paid under the
189189 judgment entry referred to in subsection (e), less any sums paid to
190190 attorneys or for costs in litigating the other civil action or obtaining the
191191 settlement agreement. A reimbursement required under this subsection
192192 shall not exceed the amount of the monetary award the claimant wins for
193193 damages in the other civil action or the amount received in the settlement
194194 agreement.
195195 (3) Whenever any judgment has been entered pursuant to this section,
196196 the attorney general shall seek to recover damages for the state of Kansas
197197 for the benefit of the state general fund from any person who knowingly
198198 contributed to the wrongful conviction and imprisonment of the claimant,
199199 to the extent the evidence in the case warrants such action. The attorney
200200 general shall prosecute ouster and criminal proceedings as the evidence in
201201 the case warrants.
202202 (g) If the court finds that the claimant is entitled to a judgment, it
203203 shall enter a certificate of innocence finding that the claimant was innocent
204204 of all crimes for which the claimant was mistakenly convicted. The clerk
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248248 of the court shall send a certified copy of the certificate of innocence and
249249 the judgment entry to the attorney general for payment pursuant to K.S.A.
250250 75-6117, and amendments thereto.
251251 (h) (1) Upon entry of a certificate of innocence, the court shall order
252252 the associated convictions and arrest records expunged and purged from all
253253 applicable state and federal systems pursuant to this subsection. The court
254254 shall enter the expungement order regardless of whether the claimant has
255255 prior criminal convictions.
256256 (2) The order of expungement shall state the:
257257 (A) Claimant's full name;
258258 (B) claimant's full name at the time of arrest and conviction, if
259259 different than the claimant's current name;
260260 (C) claimant's sex, race and date of birth;
261261 (D) crime for which the claimant was arrested and convicted;
262262 (E) date of the claimant's arrest and date of the claimant's conviction;
263263 and
264264 (F) identity of the arresting law enforcement authority and identity of
265265 the convicting court.
266266 (3) The order of expungement shall also direct the Kansas bureau of
267267 investigation to purge the conviction and arrest information from the
268268 criminal justice information system central repository and all applicable
269269 state and federal databases. The clerk of the court shall send a certified
270270 copy of the order to the Kansas bureau of investigation, which shall carry
271271 out the order and shall notify the federal bureau of investigation, the
272272 secretary of corrections and any other criminal justice agency that may
273273 have a record of the conviction and arrest. The Kansas bureau of
274274 investigation shall provide confirmation of such action to the court.
275275 (4) If a certificate of innocence and an order of expungement are
276276 entered pursuant to this section, the claimant shall be treated as not having
277277 been arrested or convicted of the crime.
278278 (i) Upon entry of a certificate of innocence, the court shall order the
279279 expungement and destruction of the associated biological samples
280280 authorized by and given to the Kansas bureau of investigation in
281281 accordance with K.S.A. 21-2511, and amendments thereto. The order shall
282282 state the information required to be stated in a petition to expunge and
283283 destroy the samples and profile record pursuant to K.S.A. 21-2511, and
284284 amendments thereto, and shall direct the Kansas bureau of investigation to
285285 expunge and destroy such samples and profile record. The clerk of the
286286 court shall send a certified copy of the order to the Kansas bureau of
287287 investigation, which shall carry out the order and provide confirmation of
288288 such action to the court. Nothing in this subsection shall require the
289289 Kansas bureau of investigation to expunge and destroy any samples or
290290 profile record associated with the claimant that was submitted pursuant to
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334334 K.S.A. 21-2511(a), and amendments thereto, related to any offense other
335335 than the offense for which the court has entered a certificate of innocence.
336336 (j) The decision to grant or deny a certificate of innocence shall not
337337 have a res judicata effect on any other proceedings.
338338 (k) Nothing in this section shall preclude the department of
339339 corrections from providing reentry services to a claimant that are provided
340340 to other persons, including, but not limited to, financial assistance, housing
341341 assistance, mentoring and counseling. Such services shall be provided
342342 while an action under this section is pending and after any judgment is
343343 entered, as appropriate for such claimant.
344344 (l) The decision of the district court may be appealed directly to the
345345 supreme court pursuant to the code of civil procedure.
346346 Sec. 2. K.S.A. 2022 Supp. 60-5004 is hereby repealed.
347347 Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
348348 publication in the statute book.
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