Substitute House Bill No. 5593
AN ACT CONCERNING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 46b-38h of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
If any person is convicted of a violation of section 53a-59, 53a-59a, 53a-59c, 53a-60, 53a-60a, 53a-60b, 53a-60c, 53a-62, 53a-63, 53a-64, 53a-64aa, 53a-64bb, 53a-64cc, 53a-70, 53a-70a, 53a-70b, as amended by this act, 53a-70c, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b, 53a-181, 53a-181c, 53a-181d, 53a-181e, 53a-182, 53a-182b, as amended by this act, 53a-183, 53a-223, 53a-223a or 53a-223b, against a family or household member, as defined in section 46b-38a, the court shall include a designation that such conviction involved family violence on the court record for the purposes of criminal history record information, as defined in subsection (a) of section 54-142g.
Sec. 2. Subsections (a) and (b) of section 53a-182b of the general statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
(a) A person is guilty of harassment in the first degree when, with the intent to harass, annoy, alarm or terrorize another person, he threatens to kill or physically injure that person or any other person, and communicates such threat by telephone, or by telegraph, mail, computer network, as defined in section 53a-250, or any other form of written communication, in a manner likely to cause annoyance or alarm and has been convicted of a capital felony under the provisions of section 53a-54b in effect prior to April 25, 2012, a class A felony, a class B felony, except a conviction under section 53a-86 or 53a-122, a class C felony, except a conviction under section 53a-87, 53a-152 or 53a-153, or a class D felony under sections 53a-60 to 53a-60c, inclusive, 53a-72a, 53a-72b, 53a-95, 53a-103, 53a-103a, 53a-114, 53a-136 or 53a-216. For the purposes of this section, "convicted" means having a judgment of conviction entered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(b) For the purposes of this section, such offense may be deemed to have been committed either at the place where the [telephone call was made or] communication originated or at the place where it was received.
Sec. 3. Subsections (a) and (b) of section 10-222d of the general statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
(a) As used in this section, sections 10-222g to 10-222i, inclusive, and section 10-222k:
(1) "Bullying" means (A) the repeated use by one or more students of a written, oral or electronic communication, such as cyberbullying, directed at or referring to another student attending school in the same school district, or (B) a physical act or gesture by one or more students repeatedly directed at another student attending school in the same school district, that: (i) Causes physical or emotional harm to such student or damage to such student's property, (ii) places such student in reasonable fear of harm to himself or herself, or of damage to his or her property, (iii) creates a hostile environment at school for such student, (iv) infringes on the rights of such student at school, or (v) substantially disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school. "Bullying" shall include, but not be limited to, a written, oral or electronic communication or physical act or gesture based on any actual or perceived differentiating characteristic, such as race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, socioeconomic status, academic status, physical appearance, or mental, physical, developmental or sensory disability, or by association with an individual or group who has or is perceived to have one or more of such characteristics;
(2) "Cyberbullying" means any act of bullying through the use of the Internet, interactive and digital technologies, cellular mobile telephone or other mobile electronic devices or any electronic communications;
(3) "Teen dating violence" means any act of physical, emotional or sexual abuse, including stalking, harassing and threatening, that occurs between two students who are currently in or who have recently been in a dating relationship;
[(3)] (4) "Mobile electronic device" means any hand-held or other portable electronic equipment capable of providing data communication between two or more individuals, including, but not limited to, a text messaging device, a paging device, a personal digital assistant, a laptop computer, equipment that is capable of playing a video game or a digital video disk, or equipment on which digital images are taken or transmitted;
[(4)] (5) "Electronic communication" means any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data or intelligence of any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectronic or photo-optical system;
[(5)] (6) "Hostile environment" means a situation in which bullying among students is sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the conditions of the school climate;
[(6)] (7) "Outside of the school setting" means at a location, activity or program that is not school related, or through the use of an electronic device or a mobile electronic device that is not owned, leased or used by a local or regional board of education;
[(7)] (8) "School employee" means (A) a teacher, substitute teacher, school administrator, school superintendent, guidance counselor, psychologist, social worker, nurse, physician, school paraprofessional or coach employed by a local or regional board of education or working in a public elementary, middle or high school; or (B) any other individual who, in the performance of his or her duties, has regular contact with students and who provides services to or on behalf of students enrolled in a public elementary, middle or high school, pursuant to a contract with the local or regional board of education; and
[(8)] (9) "School climate" means the quality and character of school life with a particular focus on the quality of the relationships within the school community between and among students and adults.
(b) Each local and regional board of education shall develop and implement a safe school climate plan to address the existence of bullying and teen dating violence in its schools. Such plan shall: (1) Enable students to anonymously report acts of bullying to school employees and require students and the parents or guardians of students to be notified annually of the process by which students may make such reports, (2) enable the parents or guardians of students to file written reports of suspected bullying, (3) require school employees who witness acts of bullying or receive reports of bullying to orally notify the safe school climate specialist, described in section 10-222k, or another school administrator if the safe school climate specialist is unavailable, not later than one school day after such school employee witnesses or receives a report of bullying, and to file a written report not later than two school days after making such oral report, (4) require the safe school climate specialist to investigate or supervise the investigation of all reports of bullying and ensure that such investigation is completed promptly after receipt of any written reports made under this section, (5) require the safe school climate specialist to review any anonymous reports, except that no disciplinary action shall be taken solely on the basis of an anonymous report, (6) include a prevention and intervention strategy, as defined by section 10-222g, for school employees to deal with bullying and teen dating violence, (7) provide for the inclusion of language in student codes of conduct concerning bullying, (8) require each school to notify the parents or guardians of students who commit any verified acts of bullying and the parents or guardians of students against whom such acts were directed not later than forty-eight hours after the completion of the investigation described in subdivision (4) of this subsection, (9) require each school to invite the parents or guardians of a student who commits any verified act of bullying and the parents or guardians of the student against whom such act was directed to a meeting to communicate to such parents or guardians the measures being taken by the school to ensure the safety of the student against whom such act was directed and to prevent further acts of bullying, (10) establish a procedure for each school to document and maintain records relating to reports and investigations of bullying in such school and to maintain a list of the number of verified acts of bullying in such school and make such list available for public inspection, and annually report such number to the Department of Education, and in such manner as prescribed by the Commissioner of Education, (11) direct the development of case-by-case interventions for addressing repeated incidents of bullying against a single individual or recurrently perpetrated bullying incidents by the same individual that may include both counseling and discipline, (12) prohibit discrimination and retaliation against an individual who reports or assists in the investigation of an act of bullying, (13) direct the development of student safety support plans for students against whom an act of bullying was directed that address safety measures the school will take to protect such students against further acts of bullying, (14) require the principal of a school, or the principal's designee, to notify the appropriate local law enforcement agency when such principal, or the principal's designee, believes that any acts of bullying constitute criminal conduct, (15) prohibit bullying (A) on school grounds, at a school-sponsored or school-related activity, function or program whether on or off school grounds, at a school bus stop, on a school bus or other vehicle owned, leased or used by a local or regional board of education, or through the use of an electronic device or an electronic mobile device owned, leased or used by the local or regional board of education, and (B) outside of the school setting if such bullying (i) creates a hostile environment at school for the student against whom such bullying was directed, (ii) infringes on the rights of the student against whom such bullying was directed at school, or (iii) substantially disrupts the education process or the orderly operation of a school, (16) require, at the beginning of each school year, each school to provide all school employees with a written or electronic copy of the school district's safe school climate plan, and (17) require that all school employees annually complete the training described in section 10-220a or section 10-222j. The notification required pursuant to subdivision (8) of this subsection and the invitation required pursuant to subdivision (9) of this subsection shall include a description of the response of school employees to such acts and any consequences that may result from the commission of further acts of bullying.
Sec. 4. Section 10-222g of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
For the purposes of section 10-222d, the term "prevention and intervention strategy" may include, but is not limited to, (1) implementation of a positive behavioral interventions and supports process or another evidence-based model approach for safe school climate or for the prevention of bullying and teen dating violence identified by the Department of Education, (2) school rules prohibiting bullying, teen dating violence, harassment and intimidation and establishing appropriate consequences for those who engage in such acts, (3) adequate adult supervision of outdoor areas, hallways, the lunchroom and other specific areas where bullying or teen dating violence is likely to occur, (4) inclusion of grade-appropriate bullying and teen dating violence education and prevention curricula in kindergarten through high school, (5) individual interventions with the bully, parents and school employees, and interventions with the bullied child, parents and school employees, (6) school-wide training related to safe school climate, (7) student peer training, education and support, and (8) promotion of parent involvement in bullying prevention through individual or team participation in meetings, trainings and individual interventions.
Sec. 5. Section 10-222i of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
(a) The Department of Education, in consultation with the State Education Resource Center, the Governor's Prevention Partnership, [and] the Commission on Children and the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, shall establish, within available appropriations, a state-wide safe school climate resource network for the identification, prevention and education of school bullying and teen dating violence in the state. Such state-wide safe school climate resource network shall make available to all schools information, training opportunities and resource materials to improve the school climate to diminish bullying and teen dating violence.
(b) The department may seek federal, state and municipal funding and may accept private donations for the administration of the state-wide safe school climate resource network.
Sec. 6. Section 10-222j of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
The Department of Education shall provide, within available appropriations, annual training to school employees, as defined in section 10-222d, except those school employees who hold [the initial educator, provisional educator or professional educator certificate] professional certification pursuant to section 10-145b unless such school employee who holds professional certification is the district safe school climate coordinator, the safe school climate specialist or a member of the safe school climate committee, as described in section 10-222k, on the prevention, identification and response to school bullying and teen dating violence, as defined in section 10-222d, and the prevention of and response to youth suicide. Such training may include, but not be limited to, (1) developmentally appropriate strategies to prevent bullying and teen dating violence among students in school and outside of the school setting, (2) developmentally appropriate strategies for immediate and effective interventions to stop bullying and teen dating violence, (3) information regarding the interaction and relationship between students committing acts of bullying and teen dating violence, students against whom such acts of bullying and teen dating violence are directed and witnesses of such acts of bullying and teen dating violence, (4) research findings on bullying and teen dating violence, such as information about the types of students who have been shown to be at-risk for bullying and teen dating violence in the school setting, (5) information on the incidence and nature of cyberbullying, as defined in section 10-222d, (6) Internet safety issues as they relate to cyberbullying, or (7) information on the incidence of youth suicide, methods of identifying youths at risk of suicide and developmentally appropriate strategies for effective interventions to prevent youth suicide. Such training may be presented in person by mentors, offered in state-wide workshops or through on-line courses.
Sec. 7. Section 10-222l of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
(a) No claim for damages shall be made against a school employee, as defined in section 10-222d, who reports, investigates and responds to bullying or teen dating violence, as defined in [said] section 10-222d, in accordance with the provisions of the safe school climate plan, described in [said] section 10-222d, if such school employee was acting in good faith in the discharge of his or her duties or within the scope of his or her employment. The immunity provided in this subsection does not apply to acts or omissions constituting gross, reckless, wilful or wanton misconduct.
(b) No claim for damages shall be made against a student, parent or guardian of a student or any other individual who reports an act of bullying or teen dating violence to a school employee, in accordance with the provisions of the safe school climate plan described in [said] section 10-222d, if such individual was acting in good faith. The immunity provided in this subsection does not apply to acts or omissions constituting gross, reckless, wilful or wanton misconduct.
(c) No claim for damages shall be made against a local or regional board of education that implements the safe school climate plan, described in section 10-222d, and reports, investigates and responds to bullying or teen dating violence, as defined in [said] section 10-222d, if such local or regional board of education was acting in good faith in the discharge of its duties. The immunity provided in this subsection does not apply to acts or omissions constituting gross, reckless, wilful or wanton misconduct.
Sec. 8. Subsection (a) of section 53a-40e of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2015):
(a) If any person is convicted of (1) a violation of subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (a) of section 53-21, section 53a-59, 53a-59a, 53a-60, 53a-60a, 53a-60b, 53a-60c, 53a-70, 53a-70a, 53a-70b, as amended by this act, 53a-70c, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b, 53a-73a, 53a-181c, 53a-181d, 53a-181e, 53a-182b, as amended by this act, 53a-183, 53a-223, 53a-223a or 53a-223b or attempt or conspiracy to violate any of said sections or section 53a-54a, [against a family or household member, as defined in section 46b-38a,] or (2) any crime that the court determines constitutes a family violence crime, as defined in section 46b-38a, or attempt or conspiracy to commit any such crime, the court may, in addition to imposing the sentence authorized for the crime under section 53a-35a or 53a-36, if the court is of the opinion that the history and character and the nature and circumstances of the criminal conduct of such offender indicate that a standing criminal protective order will best serve the interest of the victim and the public, issue a standing criminal protective order which shall remain in effect for a duration specified by the court until modified or revoked by the court for good cause shown. If any person is convicted of any crime [against a family or household member, as defined in section 46b-38a, other than a crime] not specified in subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection, the court may, for good cause shown, issue a standing criminal protective order pursuant to this subsection.
Sec. 9. Section 53a-70b of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
(a) For the purposes of this section:
(1) "Sexual intercourse" means vaginal intercourse, anal intercourse, fellatio or cunnilingus between persons regardless of sex. Penetration, however slight, is sufficient to complete vaginal intercourse, anal intercourse or fellatio and does not require emission of semen. Penetration may be committed by an object manipulated by the actor into the genital or anal opening of the victim's body; and
(2) "Use of force" means: (A) Use of a dangerous instrument; or (B) use of actual physical force or violence or superior physical strength against the victim.
(b) No spouse or cohabitor shall compel the other spouse or cohabitor to engage in sexual intercourse by the use of force against such other spouse or cohabitor, or by the threat of the use of force against such other spouse or cohabitor which reasonably causes such other spouse or cohabitor to fear physical injury.
(c) Any person who violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of a class B felony for which two years of the sentence imposed may not be suspended or reduced by the court.
Sec. 10. Subsection (j) of section 46b-38c of the 2014 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2014):
(j) The Judicial Department shall establish an ongoing training program for judges, Court Support Services Division personnel, guardians ad litem and clerks to inform them about the policies and procedures of sections 46b-1, 46b-15, 46b-38a to 46b-38f, inclusive, and 54-1g, including, but not limited to, the function of the family violence intervention units and the use of restraining and protective orders. The Judicial Branch may consult with organizations that advocate on behalf of victims of domestic violence in order to ensure that the training includes information on the unique characteristics of family violence crimes.
Sec. 11. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2014) Any person who maliciously publishes, disseminates or otherwise discloses the confidential location of an emergency shelter operated by a domestic violence agency, as defined in section 52-146k of the general statutes, without written authorization from the domestic violence agency that operates such emergency shelter to publish, disseminate or otherwise disclose the location of such emergency shelter shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.