CHAPTER 137
HB 459 – FINAL VERSION
18Jan2006… 2005-2152h
18Jan2006… 0283h
2006 SESSION
09/01
HOUSE BILL 459
AN ACT relative to access to criminal records and enhanced 911 system records.
COMMITTEE: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
This bill clarifies that law enforcement personnel have access to criminal justice data for proper investigative purposes. The bill allows access to criminal justice information by persons who maintain the state criminal justice information database.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
18Jan2006… 2005-2152h
18Jan2006… 0283h
05-0389
09/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Six
AN ACT relative to access to criminal records and enhanced 911 system records.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
137:1 Access to Criminal Records. Amend RSA 106-B:14, I to read as follows:
I. With the approval of the commissioner of safety, the director shall adopt rules under RSA 541-A as may be necessary to secure records and other information relative to persons who have been convicted of a felony, misdemeanor or violation within the state, or who are known to be habitual criminals, or who have been placed under arrest in criminal proceedings. The term “violation” as used in this section shall apply only to violations committed under title LXII. Notwithstanding RSA 91-A, such records and information, including but not limited to dissemination logs, shall not be open to the inspection of any person except those who may be authorized to inspect the same by the director, as follows:
(a) [Records and information concerning arrest not leading to conviction shall not be disclosed except to law enforcement personnel or to the individual requesting his own record] Law enforcement personnel may request and receive any information documenting an individual’s contact with the criminal justice system, including data regarding identification, arrest or citation, arraignment, judicial disposition, custody and supervision.
(b) Any individual may request and receive a copy of his or her own criminal conviction and arrest records and related information.
(c) Any individual or any public or private agency may request and receive a copy of the criminal conviction record of another who has provided authorization in writing, duly signed and notarized, explicitly allowing the requestor to receive such information.
(d) An employee of or person under contract to the state of New Hampshire to whom such disclosure is necessary in connection with the processing, storage, and transmission of such information, or the programming, repair, maintenance, testing, or procurement of equipment used to process, store, or transmit such information.
The clerks of the superior and municipal courts, or if there is no clerk the justice thereof, sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, police officers, and superintendents of the county departments of corrections shall secure and forward to the director all such information as he or she may direct relative to persons brought before said courts or arrested or in the custody of such officers. Any person violating the provisions of this section or any rules adopted under RSA 541-A shall be guilty of a violation, for each offense.
137:2 Confidentiality of Enhanced 911 System Information and Records. Amend RSA 106-H:14 to read as follows:
106-H:14 Information not Subject to Right-to-Know Law. Any information or records compiled under this chapter shall not be considered a public record for the purposes of RSA 91-A. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the bureau shall only make information or records compiled under this chapter available on a case-by-case basis to a law enforcement agency that requires the information or records for investigative purposes.
137:3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
Approved: May 22, 2006
Effective: July 21, 2006