BISMARCK, N.D. – Gov. John Hoeven today signed House Bill 1216, House Bill 1217, and Senate Bill 2029, which strengthen the state’s penalties, probation, and civil commitment laws for sexual offenders.
· HB 1216 imposes a minimum 20 year sentence and lifetime supervised probation for violent sexual offenders, including for a first offense. The bill also increases the penalty and allows states attorneys more opportunity to prosecute individuals who commit sexual offenses against minors.
· HB 1217 allows for a more flexible determination of a sexual disorder or tendency to commit sexual crimes in civil commitment cases.
· SB 2029 stiffens the penalty for violating restrictions set by the court, parole board, or law enforcement for Global Positioning System (GPS) monitoring.
“North Dakota is consistently ranked as the safest state in the nation,” Hoeven said. “These bills offer more tools for the criminal justice system to ensure that violent sexual offenders receive the supervision and treatment that they need.”
Joining Hoeven for the signing were Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem; House Majority Leader Rick Berg; Senate Minority Leader David O’Connell; Director of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Leann Bertsch; and Bonnie Palecek, executive director of the North Dakota Council on Abused Women’s Services/Coalition Against Sexual Assault.
Also joining Hoeven for the signing were members of the Task Force on Violent and Sexual Offenders, members of the Commission on Alternatives to Incarceration, and other legislators including Rep. Kim Koppelman; Rep. Lawrence Klemin, Rep. Blair Thoreson, Rep. Don Clark, Rep. Don Dietrich, Sen. Stan Lyson; Sen. Dick Dever; Sen. Larry Robinson, Sen. Tim Flakoll, Sen. Carolyn Nelson; Sen. JoNell Bakke and Sen. Joan Heckaman.
“Public safety is our primary concern,” said Stenehjem. “This legislation is an important part of the state’s efforts to ensure public safety and protect our children from harm.”
“Holding offenders accountable is a vital piece of addressing victim safety concerns,” Bonnie Palacek said. “We are encouraged that Governor Hoeven, Attorney General Stenehjem and the members of the 60th Legislative Assembly are paying serious attention to crimes of personal violence in North Dakota.”
The House of Representatives also gave final approval today of HB 1472 which limits registered sex offenders access to school property. The bill gives local school boards the authority to develop a written policy regarding sex offenders. In school districts without a written policy, sex offenders would be banned from school grounds except to vote or to attend a public meeting.
In 2003, Hoeven established a Task Force on Violent and Sexual Offenders in conjunction with the attorney general to review and strengthen, where appropriate, North Dakota’s sentencing and probation laws for violent offenders. During the 2005 session, the commission recommended new laws that established mandatory life sentences without parole for offenders when a sex crime results in the death of the victim; enhanced the civil commitment laws and probation; opened court records in civil commitment proceedings and enhanced the civil commitment process to provide for greater monitoring and supervision of dangerous sex offenders.
North Dakota was recently rated the safest state in the nation, according to the annual survey published by Kansas-based research firm Morgan Quinto Press. This marks the 10th time in the last 14 years that North Dakota has held this title.
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