EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*sb1172*
SENATE BILL 1172
E2 4lr3493
HB 1523/18 – JUD
By: Senators Muse and Jackson
Introduced and read first time: February 15, 2024
Assigned to: Rules
A BILL ENTITLED
AN ACT concerning 1
Criminal Procedure – Domestic Violence Offender Registry 2
FOR the purpose of requiring the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services 3
to establish and maintain the Domestic Violence Offender Registry; requiring a 4
certain person convicted a certain number of times of a domestically related crime to 5
register with a certain county sheriff; requiring the county sheriff to forward certain 6
registration information to the Department; requiring Registry information to be 7
made public in a certain manner; establishing a procedure by which a person may 8
obtain an order exempting the person from a certain registration requirement; and 9
generally relating to the establishment of a domestic violence offender registry. 10
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 11
Article – Criminal Procedure 12
Section 6–233(a) 13
Annotated Code of Maryland 14
(2018 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 15
BY adding to 16
Article – Criminal Procedure 17
Section 11–1201 through 11–1208 to be under the new subtitle “Subtitle 12. 18
Domestic Violence Offender Registry” 19
Annotated Code of Maryland 20
(2018 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 21
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 22
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 23
Article – Criminal Procedure 24
6–233. 25
2 SENATE BILL 1172
(a) In this section, “domestically related crime” means a crime committed by a 1
defendant against a victim who is a person eligible for relief, as defined in § 4–501 of the 2
Family Law Article, or who had a sexual relationship with the defendant within 12 months 3
before the commission of the crime. 4
SUBTITLE 12. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OFFENDER REGISTRY. 5
11–1201. 6
(A) IN THIS SUBTITLE THE FOLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE MEANINGS 7
INDICATED. 8
(B) “DOMESTICALLY RELATED CRIME” HAS THE MEANING STAT ED IN § 9
6–233 OF THIS ARTICLE. 10
(C) “REGISTRANT” MEANS A PERSON REQUI RED TO REGISTER UNDE R § 11
11–1204 OF THIS SUBTITLE. 12
(D) “REGISTRY” MEANS THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OFFENDER REGISTRY 13
ESTABLISHED UNDER § 11–1203 OF THIS SUBTITLE . 14
(E) “RELEASE” HAS THE MEANING STAT ED IN § 11–701 OF THIS TITLE. 15
11–1202. 16
FOR THE PURPOSES OF T HIS SUBTITLE, A PERSON IS CONVICTE D WHEN THE 17
PERSON: 18
(1) IS FOUND GUILTY OF A CRIME BY A JURY OR J UDICIAL OFFICER ; 19
OR 20
(2) ENTERS A PLEA OF GUILTY O R NOLO CONTENDERE . 21
11–1203. 22
(A) THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ESTA BLISH AND MAINTAIN A CENTRAL 23
COMPUTERIZED REGISTR Y OF ALL PERSONS WHO ARE REQUIRED TO REGI STER IN 24
ACCORDANCE WITH § 11–1204 OF THIS SUBTITLE , TO BE KNOWN AS THE DOMESTIC 25
VIOLENCE OFFENDER REGISTRY. 26
(B) THE REGISTRY SHALL BE UPD ATED BASED ON INFORM ATION MADE 27
AVAILABLE TO THE DEPARTMENT , INCLUDING INFORMATIO N ACQUIRED IN 28
ACCORDANCE WITH THE REGISTRATION PROVISI ONS OF §§ 11–1204 AND 11–1205 29
OF THIS SUBTITLE. 30 SENATE BILL 1172 3
(C) FOR EACH REGISTRANT, THE REGISTRY SHALL INCLUD E: 1
(1) THE REGISTRANT ’S NAME; 2
(2) THE REGISTRANT ’S RESIDENTIAL ADDRES S; 3
(3) THE DATE AND A DESCR IPTION OF THE CRIMES FOR WHICH 4
REGISTRATION IS REQU IRED; AND 5
(4) A DIGITAL IMAGE OF T HE REGISTRANT ’S HEAD AND S HOULDERS 6
TAKEN IN FULL–FACE VIEW. 7
11–1204. 8
(A) EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN SUBSECTION (B) OF THIS SECTION, A PERSON 9
CONVICTED THREE OR M ORE TIMES OF A DOMES TICALLY RELATED CRIM E SHALL 10
REGISTER WITH THE CO UNTY SHERIFF FOR THE COUNTY IN WHICH THE PERSON 11
RESIDES ON OR BEFORE THE DAT E THAT THE PERSON : 12
(1) IS RELEASED; 13
(2) IS GRANTED PROBATION ; 14
(3) IS GRANTED A SUSPEND ED SENTENCE; OR 15
(4) RECEIVES A SENTENCE THAT DOES NOT INCLUD E A TERM OF 16
IMPRISONMENT . 17
(B) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY O THER PROVISION OF LA W, A PERSON IS NO 18
LONGER SUBJECT TO RE GISTRATION UNDER THI S SUBTITLE IF: 19
(1) ALL UNDERLYING CONVI CTIONS REQUIRING REG ISTRATION ARE 20
REVERSED, VACATED, OR SET ASIDE; 21
(2) THE REGISTRANT IS PA RDONED FOR ALL UNDER LYING 22
CONVICTIONS; OR 23
(3) SUBJECT TO § 11–1207 OF THIS SUBTITLE, THE CIRCUIT COURT IN 24
THE COUNTY IN WHICH THE PERSON RESIDES E NTERS AN ORDER EXEMP TING THE 25
PERSON FROM THE REGI STRATION REQUIREMENT S OF THIS SUBTITLE. 26
11–1205. 27 4 SENATE BILL 1172
(A) A REGISTRANT SHALL PRO VIDE THE COUNTY SHER IFF WITH THE 1
FOLLOWING INF ORMATION: 2
(1) THE REGISTRANT ’S LEGAL NAME; 3
(2) THE REGISTRANT ’S CURRENT ADDRESS OR LOCATION; 4
(3) THE CRIMES FOR WHICH THE REGISTRANT WAS C ONVICTED; AND 5
(4) THE DATES AND LOCATI ONS OF THE CRIMES . 6
(B) THE COUNTY SHERIFF SH ALL OBTAIN A DIGITAL IMAGE OF THE 7
REGISTRANT’S HEAD AND SHOULDERS TAKEN IN FULL–FACE VIEW. 8
(C) A REGISTRANT SHALL UPD ATE THE REGISTRANT ’S REGISTRATION 9
INFORMATION : 10
(1) ANNUALLY; AND 11
(2) TO REFLECT ANY CHANG E IN ADDRESS WITHIN 10 DAYS OF THE 12
CHANGE. 13
(D) (1) EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (2) OF THIS SUBSECTION , 14
REGISTRATION UNDER T HIS SUBTITLE SHALL R EMAIN IN EFFECT FOR A PERIOD OF 15
15 YEARS FOLLOWING EITH ER THE DATE OF THE L ATEST CONVICTION OR THE DATE 16
OF RELEASE FROM THE LATEST PERIOD OF INC ARCERATION , WHICHEVER IS LA TER. 17
(2) THE PERIOD DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION 18
SHALL BE EXTENDED AN ADDITIONAL 20 YEARS FOR EACH CONVI CTION FOR A 19
DOMESTICALLY RELATED CRIME THAT OCCURS AF TER THE INITIAL REGI STRATION. 20
(E) THE COUNTY SHERIFF SH ALL FORWARD ALL REGISTRATION 21
INFORMATION TO THE DEPARTMENT . 22
11–1206. 23
INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OFFENDER 24
REGISTRY SHALL BE MAD E AVAILABLE TO THE P UBLIC THROUGH THE INTERNET, 25
BY TELEPHONE , BY WRITTEN ACCESS , AND IN PERSON. 26
11–1207. 27
SENATE BILL 1172 5
(A) A PERSON WH O WOULD OTHERWISE BE REQUIRED TO REGISTER UNDER 1
§ 11–1204 OF THIS SUBTITLE MAY PETITION THE CIRCUIT COURT IN THE COUNTY IN 2
WHICH THE PERSON RES IDES FOR AN ORDER EX EMPTING THE PERSON F ROM THE 3
REGISTRATION REQUIRE MENTS OF THIS SUBTIT LE. 4
(B) (1) (I) THE CIRCUIT COURT MAY ENTER AN ORDER EXEMPTING A 5
PERSON FROM THE REGI STRATION REQUIREMENT S OF THIS SUBTITLE I F THE 6
COURT FINDS THAT : 7
1. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF EACH OF THE 8
DOMESTICALLY RELATED CRIMES, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE PERSON’S CRIMINAL 9
HISTORY, DO NOT INDICATE A RISK THAT THE PERSON WILL COMM IT ANOTHER 10
DOMESTICALLY RELATED CRIME; AND 11
2. THE PERSON IS NOT A DANGER TO OTHERS . 12
(II) THE CIRCUIT COURT SHA LL SPECIFY IN WRITIN G THE 13
REASONS FOR ITS FIND INGS. 14
(2) ON MAKING THE FINDING S DESCRIBED IN P ARAGRAPH (1) OF 15
THIS SUBSECTION , THE CIRCUIT COURT SH ALL ENTER AN ORDER E XEMPTING THE 16
PERSON FROM THE REGI STRATION REQUIREMENT S OF THIS SUBTITLE A ND 17
ORDERING THE DEPARTMENT TO REMOVE THE PERSON ’S REGISTRATION 18
INFORMATION FROM THE REGISTRY. 19
11–1208. 20
(A) A PERSON WHO IS SUBJEC T TO REGISTRATION UN DER § 11–1204 OF 21
THIS SUBTITLE MAY NO T KNOWINGLY : 22
(1) FAIL TO REGISTER WIT H THE COUNTY SHERIFF ; OR 23
(2) FAIL TO PROVIDE ACCU RATE INFORMATION WHE N REGISTERING 24
UNDER § 11–1204 OF THIS SUBTITLE. 25
(B) A PERSON WHO VIOLATES THIS SE CTION IS GUILTY OF A MISDEMEANOR 26
AND ON CONVICTION IS SUBJECT TO A FINE NO T EXCEEDING $2,000. 27
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 28
October 1, 2024. 29