ENROLLED
ACT No. 258
2017 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 116
BY REPRESENTATIVES DWIGHT AND LEGER
1 AN ACT
2 To amend and reenact R.S. 46:1844(A)(2)(b) and (d), (M)(1) and (2), (O), and (R) and to
3 enact R.S. 46:1844(A)(2)(e), relative to rights of crime victims; to provide relative
4 to the registration of crime victims; to provide relative to the development of a
5 system that allows for electronic registration and notification; to authorize a
6 registered victim to submit a reentry statement recommending certain parole
7 conditions for the inmate; to require the Crime Victims Services Bureau to provide
8 the victim with information relative to the reentry statement; and to provide for
9 related matters.
10 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
11 Section 1. R.S. 46:1844(A)(2)(b) and (d), (M)(1) and (2), (O), and (R) are hereby
12 amended and reenacted and R.S. 46:1844(A)(2)(e) is hereby enacted to read as follows:
13 ยง1844. Basic rights for victim and witness
14 A. Services and information concerning services available to victims and
15 witnesses of a crime.
16 * * *
17 (2) The Department of Public Safety and Corrections shall maintain the
18 Crime Victims Services Bureau presently in operation. The bureau shall publicize
19 and provide a way for crime victims and their family members to be kept informed
20 about the following:
21 * * *
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1 (b) Parole board Committee on parole or pardon board hearings or other
2 release hearings.
3 * * *
4 (d) Beginning August 1, 2018, information regarding the process by which
5 a victim may provide a reentry statement to request that the inmate be subject to
6 certain proximity or contact restrictions as part of the inmate's parole conditions, if
7 the inmate appeared before the committee on parole and was granted parole by the
8 committee, and information on the availability of assistance to the victim in
9 completing the reentry statement.
10 (e) Inquiries concerning the department's policies and programs for inmates.
11 * * *
12 M. Victims' right to seek restitution.
13 (1) If the defendant is found guilty, the court or committee on parole board
14 shall require the defendant to pay restitution to the appropriate party in an amount
15 and manner determined by the court. In addition, the court or committee on parole
16 board may require the defendant to perform community service work in an amount
17 and according to a schedule determined by the court.
18 (2) One of the conditions of work release shall be a requirement that an
19 inmate pay from his earnings all restitution ordered by the court or the committee on
20 parole board. Even if no restitution has been ordered, the sheriff or director of the
21 program shall have the right to require payment of restitution as a condition of work
22 release.
23 * * *
24 O. Notification of pardon or parole.
25 (1) The Board of Pardons or the Board of Parole committee on parole,
26 respectively, shall notify the victim or the victim's family and the appropriate district
27 attorney that a hearing has been set for the person convicted of the crime against the
28 victim. The victim or victim's family shall have the right to make written and oral
29 statements as to the impact of the crime at any hearing before either the board or
30 committee and to rebut any statements or evidence introduced by the inmate or
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1 defendant. The victim or the victim's family, a victim advocacy group, and the
2 district attorney or his representative may also appear before either the board or
3 committee in person or by means of telephone communication from the office of the
4 local district attorney.
5 (2) Beginning August 1, 2018, when an inmate in physical custody is within
6 three months of his earliest projected release date, a registered victim may contact
7 the Crime Victim Services Bureau to submit a reentry statement to the committee on
8 parole requesting that the inmate be subject to certain proximity or contact
9 restrictions, as part of the inmate's parole conditions, that the victim believes are
10 necessary for the victim's protection. The committee on parole may consider the
11 victim's reentry statement only for the purpose of determining the inmate's parole
12 conditions and not for the purpose of determining whether to order the release of the
13 inmate on parole. A victim's reentry statement is not binding on the committee on
14 parole, but shall be considered in concert with other relevant information when
15 setting parole conditions. The provisions of this Paragraph apply only to those
16 persons who are to appear at a hearing before the committee on parole to determine
17 whether the person should be granted parole.
18 * * *
19 R. Preparation of victim notice and registration forms.
20 (1) The Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of
21 Criminal Justice shall cause to be promulgated uniform victim notice and registration
22 forms which outline and explain the rights and services established by this Chapter.
23 This information shall be updated as necessary. The costs of developing the victim
24 notice and registration form shall be funded by the Louisiana Commission on Law
25 Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice.
26 (2) To the extent that funding is available for such purposes, the Louisiana
27 Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice shall
28 develop and provide, by August 1, 2018, a system by which an agency may choose
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1 to complete and submit the uniform victim notice and registration form electronically
2 and by which a victim may choose to receive all notices electronically.
3 * * *
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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