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Minutes for HB2516 - Committee on Judiciary
Short Title
Requiring an offender who raises error in such offender's criminal history calculation for the first time on appeal to show prejudicial error, requiring the journal entry used to establish criminal history to be attached to the criminal history worksheet and authorizing the court to correct an illegal sentence while a direct appeal is pending.
Minutes Content for Tue, Mar 8, 2022
Chairperson Warren opened the hearing on HB2516.
Jason Thompson, Senior Assistant Revisor, provided an overview of HB2516 and stood for questions. (Attachment 1)
Natalie Chalmers testified in support of HB2516, stating a Kansas Supreme Court decision in State v. Obregon opened a floodgate of challenges to illegal sentences being raised for the first time on appeal. (Attachment 2)
Clayton Perkins testified in support of HB2516, stating the bill assists in getting the criminal history score accurate, then fixes errors that are happening in criminal history calculations. (Attachment 3)
Ryan Duckers testifed in opposition to HB2516, stating if the bill were passed in its current form the requirement to have every conviction record attached to every felony pre-sentence report would reverse the progress made in the work done by the Criminal Justice Reform Commission. (Attachment 4)
The conferees responded to questions from Committee members.
Aaron Breitenbach testified in support of HB2516, stating determination of criminal history is very important and the best time to do it is at the time of sentencing. The change would add a tremendous amount of time and resources to verify convictions that everyone agrees to. (Attachment 5)
Amy Raymond provided neutral testimony on HB2516, stating the proposed changes could significantly delay the sentencing and potentially increase the time a defendant is incarcerated if not released on bond and stood for questions. (Attachment 6)
Marissa Bayless testified in opposition to HB2516, stating one portion of the bill shifts the state's burden of proof onto a neutral judicial branch employee. (Attachment 7)
The Honorable Merlin Wheeler testified in opposition to HB2516, stating the primary concerns deal with the unavailability of copies of convictions as well as getting other jurisdictions to respond to information requests that would undoubtedly result in lesser sentences than would otherwise be warranted. (Attachment 8)
The conferees responded to questions from Committee members.
Scott Schultz, Executive Director, Kansas Sentencing Commission submitted a HB2516 Prison Bed Impact Assessment for Committee review. (Attachment 9)
Chairperson Warren closed the hearing on HB2516.
