07 LC 29
2710
House
Bill 525
By:
Representative Bearden of the
68th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Title 17 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to criminal
procedure, so as to require the recording of certain custodial statements under
certain circumstances; to provide for definitions; to provide for guidelines
relating to the admissibility of certain custodial statements and exceptions
thereto; to provide for preserving custodial statements; to amend Title 35 of
the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to law enforcement officers and
agencies, so as to provide for training in recording certain custodial
statements; to provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date; to
repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Title
17 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to criminal procedure, is
amended by adding a new chapter to read as follows:
"CHAPTER
19
17-19-1.
As
used in this chapter, the term:
(1)
'Accused' means a person less than 17 years of age.
(2)
'Custodial authority' means a warden, sheriff, jailer, deputy sheriff, police
officer, correctional officer, officer or employee of the Department of
Corrections or the Department of Juvenile Justice, or any other law enforcement
officer having actual custody of the accused.
(3)
'Custodial interrogation' means any interrogation regarding an alleged crime or
delinquent act which is conducted in a place of detention by a custodial
authority.
(4)
'Delinquent act' shall have the same meaning as set forth in paragraph (6) of
Code Section 15-11-2.
(5)
'Electronic recording' means an audiotape, videotape, or digital
recording.
(6)
'Place of detention' means a police station, correctional facility, holding
facility for prisoners, Department of Juvenile Justice facility, or other
government facility where persons are held in detention in connection with
criminal charges or delinquent acts which have been or may be filed against the
accused. Such term shall not include a motor vehicle.
(7)
'Serious violent felony' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code
Section 17-10-6.1.
17-19-2.
(a)
All custodial interrogations of an accused shall be electronically recorded in
their entirety and shall include the accused being advised of
Miranda
warnings.
(b)
During the prosecution of a crime or delinquent act, an oral, written, or sign
language statement of an accused made during a custodial interrogation shall be
inadmissible as evidence against the accused unless the electronic recording is
made available to the accused ten days prior to any court
proceeding.
(c)
If the court finds that the accused was subjected to a custodial interrogation
in violation of subsection (b) of this Code section, any statement made by the
accused during and following such custodial interrogation, even if otherwise in
compliance with this Code section, shall be inadmissible as evidence against the
accused.
17-19-3.
A
custodial interrogation of an accused shall be inadmissible as evidence against
the accused unless electronically recorded and:
(1)
The accused´s parent, legal guardian, or attorney is present at the time
the custodial interrogation occurs; or
(2)
In the case of exigent circumstances involving the accused being a suspect in a
serious violent felony, an adult to be designated by either the accused, the
accused´s parent, legal guardian, or a child advocate is present at the
time of the custodial interrogation.
17-19-4.
Notwithstanding
the requirement to electronically record an accused´s custodial
interrogation, nothing contained in this chapter shall preclude the admission
into evidence against the accused of:
(1)
An interrogation conducted in a location other than a place of detention which
lacks readily available electronic recording equipment;
(2)
A custodial interrogation in which the accused refuses to have his or her
custodial interrogation electronically recorded and such refusal is
electronically recorded;
(3)
A custodial interrogation which is incomplete due to equipment failure, which
failure is unknown to the custodial authority;
(4)
A custodial interrogation which is incomplete due to equipment failure, which
failure is known to the custodial authority, but replacement equipment was not
readily available;
(5)
An accused´s spontaneous statement which is not made in response to a
custodial interrogation; or
(6)
An accused´s statement made during his or her processing or
booking.
17-19-5.
The
state shall not destroy or alter any electronic recording made of a custodial
interrogation until such time a conviction for any offense relating to the
interrogation becomes final and all direct and habeas corpus appeals are
exhausted, or the prosecution of the offense is barred by
law."
SECTION
2.
Title
35 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to law enforcement
officers and agencies, is amended by adding a new Code section to the end of
Chapter 1, relating to general provisions for law enforcement officers and
agencies, to read as follows:
"35-1-15.
The
Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council and the Georgia Public
Safety Training Center shall establish guidelines and procedures for the
incorporation of training materials and information in methods for
electronically recording a suspect´s statement pursuant to Chapter 19 of
Title 17 in all relevant courses for which they have responsibility and
oversight."
SECTION
3.
This
Act shall become effective on July 1, 2007.
SECTION
4.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.