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HB 7083 — Open Government Sunset Review/Interference with Custody
by Government Operations Subcommittee and Rep. Young (SB 570 by Judiciary Committee)
This summary is provided for information only and does not represent the opinion of any Senator, Senate Officer, or Senate Office.
Prepared by: Judiciary Committee (JU)
This bill is the result of the Legislature’s Open Government Sunset Review of a public-records exemption for information submitted to the sheriff or state attorney for the purpose of obtaining immunity from prosecution for the offense of interference with custody.
Under the offense of interference with custody, it is a third-degree felony for any person – without legal authority – to knowingly or recklessly take a minor or any incompetent person from the custody of his or her parent, a guardian, a public agency in charge of the child or incompetent person, or any other lawful custodian. It is also a third-degree felony – in the absence of a court order determining custody or visitation rights – for a parent, stepparent, legal guardian, or relative who has custody of a minor or incompetent person to take or conceal the minor or incompetent person with a malicious intent to deprive another person of his or her right to custody.
There is an exception, however, in cases in which a person is the victim of domestic violence, has reasonable cause to believe he or she is about to become the victim of domestic violence, or believes that the action was necessary to preserve the minor or the incompetent person from danger. For the exception to apply, a person who takes a minor or incompetent person must, within 10 days of the taking, make a report to the sheriff or state attorney for the county in which the minor or incompetent person resided. The report must include the name of the person taking the minor or incompetent person, the current address and telephone number of the person and the minor or incompetent person, and the reasons the minor or incompetent person was taken.
Currently, the public-records exemption protects from disclosure the current address and telephone number of the person who takes a minor or incompetent person, as well as the address and telephone number of the minor or incompetent person, contained in the report to the sheriff or state attorney. The bill retains the public-records exemption by deleting language providing for the scheduled repeal of the exemption. The exemption will expire on October 2, 2011, unless the reenactment by the Legislature becomes law.
If approved by the Governor, these provisions take effect October 1, 2011.
Vote: Senate 38-0; House 114-0