by Lee Davis
151 New Tennessee Laws going into effect July 1, 2012.
There are new laws going into effect in Tennessee in a few days that range from expungement of old convictions to new obligations on the sex offense registry for statutory rape convictions. Listed below are all changes to Tennessee criminal law.
Probation and Parole - As enacted, permits private probation providers who meet certain qualifications and contract with the department of correction to supervise Class E felony offenders who are granted probation. - Amends TCA Title 40.
Sentencing - As enacted, establishes enhanced punishment for crimes of force or violence committed while acting in concert with two or more other persons. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
Sentencing - As enacted, increases the punishment for unlawful possession of firearm by person with previous felony conviction. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
Probation and Parole - As enacted, transfers from board of probation and parole to department of correction certain functions relating to probation and parole services and the community correction grant program. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 38; Title 39; Title 40; Title 41 and Title 55.
Immigration - As enacted, clarifies that a tax form, as such term is used in the part, means any form issued by the United States internal revenue service. - Amends TCA Title 50, Chapter 1, Part 7.
Arrests - As enacted, enacts the "Ricky Otts Act" which requires an officer to arrest drivers involved in accidents resulting in serious bodily injury or death when such drivers lack a valid driver license and evidence of financial responsibility; prohibits the issuance of a citation in lieu of arrest in such circumstances. - Amends TCA Title 39; Title 40; Title 55, Chapter 10; Title 55, Chapter 12; Title 55, Chapter 50 and Title 55, Chapter 8.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, criminalizes possession, use, transfer or installation of software designed to manipulate retail records of transactions for evading payment of sales tax to the state. Amends TCA Title 38; Title 39; Title 40 and Title 67.
Sexual Offenders - As enacted, adds the offense of promoting prostitution to the list of sexual offenses requiring registration under the sex offender registry and adds second offense promoting prostitution to the list of violent sexual offenses. - Amends TCA Title 40, Chapter 39, Part 2.
Sentencing - As enacted, makes elected and appointed public officials ineligible for diversion for criminal offenses committed in their official capacity or that involve the duties of their offices. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
Judges and Chancellors - As enacted, terminates the court of the judiciary and replaces it with a 16-person board of judicial conduct; revises provisions governing such a board. - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 29 and Title 17, Chapter 5.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, expands the drugs whose production, manufacture, distribution, sale or possession would be a crime under the present law offense regarding synthetic derivatives or analogues of methcathinone. - Amends TCA Title 39.
Criminal Procedure - As enacted, expands definition of "uses" and "conducts" to include "transport" and "conceal" for purposes of the money laundering criminal offenses. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40 relative to criminal offenses and criminal procedure.
Criminal Procedure - As enacted, deletes provision prohibiting district attorney from applying to judge for a wiretap order in marijuana cases in which the amount is less than 700 pounds. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17.
Law Enforcement - As enacted, requires that officers who knowingly provide POST with false or misleading information concerning histories be decertified, removed from office, and be deemed ineligible to apply for a new law enforcement position in Tennessee; requires denial of application for POST certification of an applicant who knowingly provides POST with false or misleading information. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 8; Title 38; Title 39 and Title 40.
Sexual Offenses - As enacted, clarifies that law permits prosecution and conviction for displaying sexual activity to a minor by electronic communication regardless of whether the victim is a minor or an undercover police officer posing as a minor. - Amends TCA Title 39.
Sexual Offenders - As enacted, provides that the conveyance of personal property of a sexual offender used to violate a residential and work restriction of the sex offender registry is subject to forfeiture if the victim was a minor; specifies under the provisions regarding forfeiture of property used in the commission of a sexual offense that property is subject to "judicial forfeiture" instead of "administrative forfeiture". - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13, Part 5.
Sexual Offenders - As enacted, authorizes judge, after consideration of facts and circumstances surrounding the case, to require a person convicted of statutory rape for the first time to register as a sexual offender on the sexual offender and violent sexual offender registry. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13, Part 5 and Title 40, Chapter 39, Part 2.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, revises the punishment for the offenses of public indecency and indecent exposure and revises the definition of "public place" with regard to the offense of public indecency. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, creates defense in prosecution of prostitution where a person is a victim of involuntary labor servitude, sexual servitude, or where the person is a victim as defined under the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
DUI Offenses - As eancted, expands present law to provide that it is not a defense to a violation of the DUI statute that a person is or was lawfully entitled to use an intoxicant, marijuana, controlled substance, or other drug. - Amends TCA Title 55, Chapter 10, Part 4.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, creates Class A misdemeanor offense of knowingly or recklessly maiming or harming a service animal and the Class C misdemeanor of interfering with a service dog in the performance of its duties and provides for restitution to the handler of the dog. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 14, Part 2.
DUI Offenses - As enacted, increases penalty for violation of DUI statute when child under 18 is in the vehicle to require that the mandatory minimum 30-day sentence for this offense be served consecutive to any sentence received for a violation of specified other alcohol-related offenses. - Amends TCA Title 55, Chapter 10, Part 4.
Criminal Procedure - As enacted, provides that as part of a defendant's alternative sentencing for a violation of domestic
assault, the sentencing judge may direct the defendant to complete a
drug or alcohol treatment program or available counseling programs that address violence and control issues including, but not limited to, a batterer's intervention program that has been certified by the domestic violence state coordinating council. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
Sentencing - As enacted, requires that a person convicted of committing a dangerous felony involving a firearm who is subsequently convicted of the same serve a minimum of 15 years imprisonment at 100 percent. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17 and Title 40.
Criminal Procedure - As enacted, clarifies that a defendant cannot get records expunged if convicted of an offense other than the charged offense or convicted of one offense in a multi-count indictment, including lesser included offenses. - Amends TCA Title 40, Chapter 32, Part 1.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, creates a Class A misdemeanor for an individual to either: knowingly prevent another individual from placing a telephone call to 911 or from requesting assistance in an emergency from a law enforcement agency, medical facility, or other
agency or entity the primary purpose of which is to provide for the safety of individuals; or intentionally render unusable a telephone that would otherwise be used by another individual to place a telephone call to 911 or to request assistance in an emergency from a law enforcement agency, medical facility, or other agency or entity, the primary purpose of which is to provide for the safety of individuals. - Amends TCA Title 7; Title 39; Title 40 and Title 65.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, revises definitions of fetus as victim for criminal homicide and assaults to remove viability requirement and include an embryo and remove reference to victim being pregnant; revises legislative intent statement. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13. Abortion - As enacted, enacts the "Life Defense Act of 2012," which requires that physicians performing abortions have admitting privileges in hospital within certain area of where abortion performed. - Amends TCA Title 37, Chapter 10, Part 3; Title 39, Chapter 15, Part 2 and Title 68.
Bail, Bail Bonds - As enacted, declares a defendant who is unlawfully present in the United States and has committed certain traffic violations may be deemed a risk of flight for bail purposes; authorizes clerks to set bail for such defendants at a higher amount than normally permitted. - Amends TCA Title 39; Title 40 and Title 55.
Criminal Procedure - As enacted, provides that a person may be prosecuted, tried and punished for producing obscene material, sexual exploitation of a minor, aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor or especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, no later than 25 years from the date the child becomes 18 years of age. - Amends TCA Title 40, Chapter 2.
Sexual Offenses - As enacted, enacts "Kimberlee's Law," which requires that persons convicted of aggravated rape serve 100 percent of sentence. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13, Part 5 and Title 40, Chapter 35.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, enhances the penalty for involuntary labor servitude where the victim was under age 13 and adds means by which the crime is possible. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13 and Title 40.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, clarifies that the offense of trafficking a person for a commercial sex act is Class A felony if the victim is a child under 15 years of age; adds that the offense is a Class A felony if the offense occurs on the grounds or facilities or within 1,000 feet of a public or private school, secondary school, preschool, child care agency, public library, recreational center or public park; adds Class C felony of advertising commercial sexual abuse of a minor; clarifies certain sex offender registry provisions.
Welfare - As enacted, requires the department of human services to develop a plan to implement a program of suspicion-based drug testing for each applicant who is otherwise eligible for temporary assistance for needy families (TANF). - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 3, Part 12; Title 4, Chapter 3, Part 18 and Title 71.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, creates new Class A felony theft provision if the amount stolen is 250,000 or more; allows state to aggregate value of property stolen in certain circumstances; and changes venue for all offenses graded by value. - Amends TCA Title
39, Chapter 14, Part 1.
Animal Cruelty and Abuse - As enacted, creates Class E felony of aggravated cruelty to livestock, which is intentionally engaging in specified conduct in a depraved and sadistic manner that results in serious bodily injury or death to the animal and is done without lawful
or legitimate purpose. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 14, Part 2.
DUI Offenses - As enacted, authorizes judge to order the use of an ignition interlock device for any person granted a restricted driver license; order may be with or without geographical restrictions, but if the device is ordered, then it must remain on the vehicle during the entire period of the restricted license. - Amends TCA Title 55, Chapter 10, Part 4.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, includes the commission of or attempt to commit a criminal gang offense within the definition of racketeering activity and enterprise for purposes of the Racketeer and Corrupt Organization Act (RICO). - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 12, Part 2.
Criminal Offenses - As enacted, makes it a Class A misdemeanor for a person 18 years of age or older to knowingly promote or organize a gathering of two or more minors in a public place with the intent to provide a location for such minors to engage in public indecency; any personal property used in the commission of a violation of this offense would, upon conviction, be subject to judicial forfeiture. - Amends TCA Title 39; Title 40; Title 67; Title 68 and Title 71.
Criminal Procedure - As enacted, authorizes persons to petition for expungement of records of conviction for certain non-violent, non-sexual misdemeanors and Class E felonies that were committed on or after November 1, 1989.
Davis & Hoss, PC attorneys will be posting new developments on these legislative changes as they occur.
