March 2007

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The major sex offender registration and civil commitment legislation became effective July 1, 2006.  The Department of Corrections (VADOC) was required to submit a report along with the Department of State Police (VSP) on its work to implement the changes and presentations were made to the Senate Finance and House Appropriations Committees.

 

Among the highlights were:

 

· Substantial training on the Sex Offender Registry and GPS;

· Establishment of 8 additional Containment supervision sites;

· Assignment of 12 additional supervision and monitoring positions;

· Filling a Sex Offender Program Manager position;

· Adding additional “predicate offenses” for which an offender can be charged as a “sexually violent predator”;

· Creation of a Sex Offender Screening and Assessment Unit to administer the STATIC 99;

· Close collaboration with the new State Police Sex Offender Investigation Unit.

 

The proposed 2007 legislation was primarily focused on “touching up” the 2006 legislation and moving toward full compliance with the Federal “Adam Walsh Act” with which all states must comply by July 2009.  Fortunately, Virginia is in good shape.  The primary requirement will be to extend the period on which a registrant must comply before seeking removal from ten (10) to fifteen (15) years.

 

Among the sex offender bills presented were:

 

· Increased funding for public defenders and court appointed attorneys will likely result in more challenges to pre-sentence and violation reports;

· More systematic requirements and follow up to obtaining DNA samples;

· Closer public scrutiny of the location of outpatient sex offender treatment groups and contractual community residential programs;

· Successful DOC opposition to mandatory revocation of supervision for Registry violations;

· More restrictions on sex offenders entering school property;

· Allows clinical social workers to assess sexually abnormal offenders if no psychiatrist or psychologist are reasonably available;

· Removed some GPS funding as population has not grown as rapidly as projected;

· Authorized study of the use of “physical castration”;

· Adds additional SVP predicate crimes including murder in conjunction with a violent sexual offense;

· Allows Civil Review Committee 120 rather 90 days to complete its work.

 

 

 

Note that the SVP/Civil Commitment Interagency Workgroup is updating current procedures which will be issued soon.  The Department has also entered into an agreement with the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services to supervise “SVP’s on conditional release” who have no active probation or parole supervision obligation.

 

 

 

Please note that the foregoing summary was prepared before the final veto session in April.  Any changes made during that session would not be reflected in the summary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE JOURNAL IS THE ONLINE PERIODICAL OF THE VIRGINIA PROBATION AND PAROLE ASSOCIATION

 

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Civil Sex Offender Legislation - 2007 Virginia General Assembly:

A Summary Report

 

Submitted by

Walt Pulliam, Jr.

Chief of Operations, Virginia Community Corrections