The superduperawesome megacriminaljusticereform bill
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is here. I’m going to go join the legislators and stick my head in the sand. (From CTLP)
Update: It seems that a “three-strikes” provision has been defeated.
Second Update: Home invasion is now a crime, not requiring proof of knowledge of persons present; three-strikes is not on the books. However, the persistent offender law has been re-written to make it easier for prosecutors to seek harsher penalties.
Prosecutors seeking to convict someone as a “persistent offender” will no longer have to prove that an offender has “a history and character that … indicate that extended incarceration will best serve the public interest.” Instead, prosecutors will simply have to show that the defendant has the requisite number of previous convictions necessary to apply a longer sentence.
This, however, still leaves them with the discretion of whether to charge someone as a persistent offender.
Some of the other provisions that were passed:
•Expanding global positioning system monitoring of 300 more criminals out on parole and believed to be the most likely to commit more crimes. The state would have to hire 10 new parole officers to monitor the parolees.
•Providing more residential treatment beds for sex offenders.
•Creating an automated system to notify victims of court hearings and make it easier to allow state agencies to share information about victims.
•Requiring a state-of-the-art computer system.
•Adding a forensic psychologist and two victim advocates to work full-time for the parole board.
•Providing a video link between each prison and the parole board, costing about $250,000 overall, for parole hearings.
•Requiring the courts to provide often-secret juvenile and youthful-offender records to the parole board and Department of Correction.
No measure concerning building prisons or improving rehabilitation were taken up. Those might be addressed in the general session next month.
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I’m glad that Home Invasion is now a crime separate from plain burglary. If I understand this right, the carrying of a weapon is a necessary element of home invasion. After all, why would someone carry a weapon if they thought they were only going to encounter a TV and some jewelry?
Right and I think that’s the necessary wrinkle that might differentiate it from burglary. I haven’t done an elements analysis yet, so I don’t know if it makes any difference.
As you’re probably aware, however, almost anything can be a dangerous instrument. Such as a screwdriver to unscrew the tv stand.
Aaaah.
I’m a total douche; I totally forgot about the weapon element from back when I worked out-of-state.
The weapons requirement, however, wasn’t a dangerous instrument, it was a deadly weapon. As it turns out, having a screwdriver could get you hooked for possession of burglarious tools, but not for home invasion. Cool, huh?
And it case you missed it… You heard it here first: I just admitted to being a douche.
They should make sure they include any weapons that the guy picks up in the house. If homeowner confronts home invader with baseball bat, home invader doesn’t get to pick up knife from kitchen, even if said bat is used on home invader. There should also be a provision, if it isn’t included in Ct. law already, that bars criminal liability for a homeowner using deadly force against a home invader in his house (and I don’t care if said home invader is crawling out of the window).
Nope, both dangerous instrument and deadly weapon are already there in burglary one:
Sec. 53a-101. Burglary in the first degree: Class B felony. (a) A person is guilty of burglary in the first degree when he enters or remains unlawfully in a building with intent to commit a crime therein and: (1) He is armed with explosives or a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, or (2) in the course of committing the offense, he intentionally, knowingly or recklessly inflicts or attempts to inflict bodily injury on anyone.
Oh, and already a mandatory minimum if possessing a dangerous instrument or deadly weapon:
(c) Burglary in the first degree is a class B felony provided any person found guilty under subdivision (1) of subsection (a) shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of which five years of the sentence imposed may not be suspended or reduced by the court.
Its a great thing that the govt. has isolated its policies on house break-ins and plain burglaries. The violence that some people encounter in protecting themselves in a house break is terrible. Is all this going to be economically viable with the economy being the way it is ??