Bill Summary for Bill Number HB06-1151

Date: 04/26/2006

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB06-1151

SENATE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Moved prepared amendment L.008 (Attachment B). Th Refer House Bill 06-1151, as amended, to the Commi	Pass Without Objection PASS

02:18 PM -- House Bill 06-1151

Senator Groff, sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1151 concerning the crime of felony child abuse. Under current law, felony child abuse is typically charged when a person causes a physical injury to a child or places a child in a situation where physical injury could occur. This bill adds a new form of child abuse. In particular, it specifies that child abuse can occur when a person having the care, custody, or control of a child causes severe emotional damage to the child as evidenced by severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or aggressive behavior. This condition must be diagnosed by a licensed medical doctor or psychologist. This bill, as amended by the House Judiciary Committee on February 9, 2006, specifies that for a second or subsequent misdemeanor child abuse offense, if the court finds that a person committed any of the following forms of child abuse, the offense is a Class 5 felony:

• cruel punishment or unreasonable isolation of a child;
• threats of harm to a child or other significant people in a child's life;
• acts of domestic violence in the presence of a child;
• malnourishment or a lack of proper medical care for a child; or
• extreme deprivation of hygienic or sanitary living conditions.

02:20 PM -- Lori Burkey, Colorado Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), spoke in favor of the bill. Ms. Burkey discussed the issue of severe emotional abuse of children.

02:23 PM -- Maureen Cain, Colorado Criminal Defense Bar, spoke in support of the bill. Ms. Cain talked about the difficulty of defining emotional abuse and how this bill is a compromise for dealing with the problem.


BILL:	HB06-1151
TIME:	02:26:03 PM
MOVED:	Bacon
MOTION:	Moved prepared amendment L.008 (Attachment B). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Bacon
	Dyer	Excused
	Gordon
	Mitchell
	Traylor
	Shaffer
	Grossman
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	HB06-1151
TIME:	02:27:15 PM
MOVED:	Bacon
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 06-1151, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations with a favorable recommendation. The motion passed on a vote of 4-0.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Bacon	Yes
	Dyer	Excused
	Gordon	Yes
	Mitchell	Excused
	Traylor	Yes
	Shaffer	Yes
	Grossman	Excused
Final YES: 4 NO: 0 EXC: 3 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS