Legislation

In June, the House and Senate approved disturbing legislation allowing for the collection of DNA from people arrested – but not yet put on trial – for a number of offenses.

Following a series of unpopular decisions by the Parole Board, the General Assembly weighed a number of changes to existing parole laws for individuals convicted of murder.

We supported legislation that aimed to reinstate the policy in place under a First Circuit decision by requiring law enforcement to have reasonable suspicion prior to performing a strip search of misdemeanant arrestees, and a warrant based on probable cause before conducting a body cavity search.

Over the past several years, the General Assembly has passed a number of new laws requiring nationwide criminal background checks be conducted on employees and volunteers across a wide spectrum of job titles, and this year was no exception.

Turning back impassioned objections from Rep. Maria Cimini, Grace Diaz and others in the closing hours of the session, the General Assembly passed legislation drastically raising the criminal penalties for graffiti offenders, going so far as to turn graffiti into a felony at the third offense.

At the request of the Attorney General’s office, the Senate approved legislation imposing additional and mandatory penalties on individuals determined to be part of a “criminal street gang,” up to one extra year in jail for a misdemeanor and up to ten extra years in jail for any felony.

The General Assembly again considered a number of bills dealing with the required installation of ignition interlock devices in the cars of individuals convicted of DUI and other offenses.

In July, the House passed legislation overhauling the state’s sex offender registration and community notification laws, replacing them with federal standards so costly that few states have chosen to implement them.

The House adopted amendments proposed by the ACLU in addressing legislation that restricted the possession of the plants salvia divinorum and datura stramonium, or Gypsum Weed.