2005 Legislation
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HOUSE BILL NO. 204 – Defendant/court release/jurisdictn

HOUSE BILL NO. 204

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Bill Status



H0204................................by JUDICIARY, RULES AND ADMINISTRATION
COURT JURISDICTION - Amends existing law relating to court jurisdiction to
provide that under certain circumstances the court may decide whether to
place a defendant on probation or release within a reasonable time after
the one hundred eighty day period of retained jurisdiction has expired.
                                                                        
02/14    House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/15    Rpt prt - to Jud
02/22    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/23    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/01    3rd rdg - PASSED - 67-0-3
      AYES -- Anderson, Andrus, Barraclough, Barrett, Bastian, Bayer,
      Bedke, Bell, Bilbao, Block, Boe, Bolz, Bradford, Cannon, Chadderdon,
      Clark, Deal, Denney, Edmunson, Ellsworth, Eskridge, Field(18),
      Field(23), Garrett, Hart, Harwood, Henbest, Henderson, Jaquet, Jones,
      Kemp, Lake, LeFavour, Loertscher, Martinez, Mathews, McGeachin,
      McKague, Miller, Mitchell, Moyle, Nielsen, Nonini, Pasley-Stuart,
      Pence, Raybould, Ring, Ringo, Roberts, Rusche, Rydalch, Sali, Sayler,
      Schaefer, Shepherd(2), Shepherd(8), Shirley, Skippen, Smith(30),
      Smith(24), Smylie, Snodgrass, Stevenson, Trail, Wills, Wood, Mr.
      Speaker
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Black, Collins, Crow
    Floor Sponsor - Shirley
    Title apvd - to Senate
03/02    Senate intro - 1st rdg - to Jud
03/14    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/15    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/21    3rd rdg - PASSED - 31-0-3, 1 vacancy
      AYES -- Andreason, Brandt, Broadsword, Bunderson, Burkett,
      Burtenshaw, Cameron, Compton, Corder, Darrington, Davis, Gannon,
      Geddes, Goedde, Hill, Jorgenson, Kelly, Keough, Langhorst, Little,
      Lodge, Marley, McGee, McKenzie, Pearce, Richardson, Schroeder,
      Stegner, Stennett, Sweet, Williams
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Coiner, Malepeai, Werk, (District 21 seat
      vacant)
    Floor Sponsor - Jorgenson
    Title apvd - to House
03/22    To enrol
03/23    Rpt enrol - Sp signed
03/24    Pres signed - To Governor
03/28    Governor signed
         Session Law Chapter 186
         Effective: 07/01/05

Bill Text


                                                                        
                                                                        
  ]]]]              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ]]]]
 Fifty-eighth Legislature                   First Regular Session - 2005
                                                                        
                                                                        
                              IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
                                                                        
                                     HOUSE BILL NO. 204
                                                                        
                      BY JUDICIARY, RULES AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
                                                                        
  1                                        AN ACT
  2    RELATING TO COURT JURISDICTION; AMENDING SECTION 19-2601, IDAHO CODE, TO  PRO-
  3        VIDE  THAT  UNDER  CERTAIN  CIRCUMSTANCES  THE COURT MAY DECIDE WHETHER TO
  4        PLACE A DEFENDANT ON PROBATION OR RELEASE JURISDICTION WITHIN A REASONABLE
  5        TIME AFTER THE ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY DAY PERIOD OF RETAINED JURISDICTION  HAS
  6        EXPIRED.
                                                                        
  7    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
                                                                        
  8        SECTION  1.  That  Section 19-2601, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
  9    amended to read as follows:
                                                                        
 10        19-2601.  COMMUTATION, SUSPENSION, WITHHOLDING OF SENTENCE  --  PROBATION.
 11    Whenever  any  person shall have been convicted, or enter a plea of guilty, in
 12    any district court of the state of Idaho, of or to any crime against the  laws
 13    of  the state, except those of treason or murder, the court in its discretion,
 14    may:
 15        1.  Commute the sentence and confine the defendant in the county jail, or,
 16    if the defendant is of proper age, commit the defendant to the custody of  the
 17    state department of juvenile corrections; or
 18        2.  Suspend  the  execution  of the judgment at the time of judgment or at
 19    any time during the term of a sentence  in  the  county  jail  and  place  the
 20    defendant  on  probation under such terms and conditions as it deems necessary
 21    and expedient; or
 22        3.  Withhold judgment on such terms and for such time as it may  prescribe
 23    and may place the defendant on probation; or
 24        4.  Suspend the execution of the judgment at any time during the first one
 25    hundred  eighty  (180) days of a sentence to the custody of the state board of
 26    correction. The court shall retain jurisdiction  over  the  prisoner  for  the
 27    first  one  hundred eighty (180) days or, if the prisoner is a juvenile, until
 28    the juvenile reaches twenty-one (21) years of age. The  prisoner  will  remain
 29    committed  to the board of correction if not affirmatively placed on probation
 30    by the court. In extraordinary circumstances, where the court  concludes  that
 31    it  is  unable  to obtain and evaluate the relevant information within the one
 32    hundred eighty (180) day period of retained jurisdiction, or where  the  court
 33    concludes  that  a hearing is required and is unable to obtain the defendant's
 34    presence for such a hearing within such period, the court may  decide  whether
 35    to  place  the defendant on probation or release jurisdiction within a reason-
 36    able time, not to exceed thirty (30) days, after the one hundred eighty  (180)
 37    day  period of retained jurisdiction has expired. Placement on probation shall
 38    be under such terms and conditions as the court deems necessary and expedient.
 39    The court in its discretion may sentence a defendant  to  more  than  one  (1)
 40    period of retained jurisdiction after a defendant has been placed on probation
 41    in  a case. In no case shall the board of correction or its agent, the depart-
 42    ment of correction, be required to hold a hearing of any kind with respect  to
 43    a  recommendation to the court for the grant or denial of probation. Probation
                                                                        
                                           2
                                                                        
  1    is a matter left to the sound discretion of the court. Any recommendation made
  2    by the department to the court regarding the prisoner shall be in  the  nature
  3    of  an  addendum  to  the  presentence report. The board of correction and its
  4    agency, the department of correction, and their employees shall  not  be  held
  5    financially  responsible for damages, injunctive or declaratory relief for any
  6    recommendation made to the district court under this section.
  7        5.  If the crime involved is a felony and if judgment is withheld as  pro-
  8    vided   in subsection 3. of this section or if judgment and a sentence of cus-
  9    tody to the state board of correction is suspended at the time of judgment  in
 10    accordance  with subsection 2. of this section or as provided by subsection 4.
 11    of this section and the court shall place the  defendant  upon  probation,  it
 12    shall  be  to  the board of correction, to a county juvenile probation depart-
 13    ment, or any other person or persons  the  court,  in  its  discretion,  deems
 14    appropriate.
 15        6.  If the crime involved is a misdemeanor, indictable or otherwise, or if
 16    the court should suspend any remaining portion of a jail sentence already com-
 17    muted  in  accordance  with  subsection  1.  of this section, the court, if it
 18    grants probation, may place the defendant on probation. If the convicted  per-
 19    son  is  a  juvenile  held for adult criminal proceedings, the court may order
 20    probation under the supervision of the county's juvenile probation department.
 21        7.  The period of probation ordered by a court under this section under  a
 22    conviction  or  plea of guilty for a misdemeanor, indictable or otherwise, may
 23    be for a period of not more than two (2) years; and under a conviction or plea
 24    of guilty for a felony the period of probation may be for a period of not more
 25    than the maximum period for which the defendant might have been imprisoned.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact


                        STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
                                
                              RS14873
                                
This bill is intended to resolve the uncertainty that now exists as to
when a sentencing court can make a decision as to whether to place a
defendant on probation following a period of retained jurisdiction.
                                
Idaho Code  19-2601(4) provides that a sentencing court can retain
jurisdiction over a defendant for 180 days, and that at any time
during that period the court may place the defendant on probation.  In
State v. Diggie, 140 Idaho 238, 91 P.3d 1142 (Ct. App. 2004), the
Court of Appeals reaffirmed that a sentencing court loses jurisdiction
over a defendant and may no longer place the defendant on probation
when the 180-day period expires.  The Court went on to say, however,
"We deem it unnecessary to hold in this case that a sentencing court
may never make a decision to place a defendant on probation within a
reasonable time after the 180-day period of retained jurisdiction has
expired where extraordinary circumstances exist that may explain or
justify court action beyond the statutorily established period."  91
P.3d at 1145.
                                
This bill would provide that a court that has retained jurisdiction
may place a defendant on probation after the 180-day period has
expired only where extraordinary circumstances exist that prevent the
court from obtaining needed information or securing the defendant's
presence for a hearing.  Even then, the 180-day period could be
extended only for 30 days.  This would resolve the existing
uncertainty in the law and provide some leeway for sentencing courts
in the small number of cases where such extraordinary circumstances
are present.
                                
                                 
                          FISCAL NOTE
                                
This bill would have no impact on the general fund.





Contact Person:

Patricia Tobias
Administrative Director of the Courts
(208) 334-2246


Statement of Purpose/Fiscal Note                          H 204