Youngstown Daily Legal News

Bill would expand law for DNA testing for voyeurism, public indecency

TIFFANY L. PARKS
Special to the Legal News
Published: October 14, 2015

A new bill that would require DNA testing for misdemeanor convictions of voyeurism, public indecency, procuring, soliciting, loitering to engage in soliciting and prostitution has been referred to a committee.

House Bill 283, sponsored by Rep. Teresa Fedor, D-Toledo, would expand state law that currently requires an individual who commits a felony violation of voyeurism, public indecency, procuring or soliciting to provide a DNA specimen.

A bill summary states that DNA collection for the additional misdemeanor offenses would be done under the procedures and according to the timeframes specified in continuing law for DNA collection from other misdemeanor offenders.

The timing and entity responsible for collection would vary depending upon an offender’s sentence.

For example, the summary states, if the person is sentenced to a term of imprisonment, the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction would be responsible for the DNA collection at intake.

The probation department or Adult Parole Authority would collect the DNA specimen for offenders on probation, parole, community control or other supervised release.

The summary goes on to state that continuing law requires the officer collecting the DNA specimen to forward the specimen to the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation in accordance with procedures established by the bureau superintendent no later than 15 days after collection.

Under continuing law, a DNA specimen must be collected from any person who has been convicted of any of the following misdemeanors: a misdemeanor offense or an attempt to commit or complicity in committing a misdemeanor offense of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor; a misdemeanor violation of any law that arose out of the same facts and circumstances and same act as did a charge against the person for aggravated murder, murder, kidnapping, rape, sexual battery, unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, gross sexual imposition or aggravated robbery that previously was dismissed or amended; a misdemeanor offense of interference with custody that would have been the offense of child stealing had it been committed prior to July 1, 1996; or a sexually oriented offense or a child-victim oriented offense that is a misdemeanor if the offender is a tier III sex offender/child-victim offender in relation to that offense.

HB 283 is co-sponsored by more than a dozen lawmakers. The bill has been assigned to the House Judiciary Committee.

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