2008 Press Release
April 25, 2008
The West Hartford delegation announces legislation that will double and triple jail sentences for repeat violent criminals and will also give criminal justice professionals $10 million in new funding for prosecutors, increased GPS tracking, state police, parolee supervision, parole officers, warrant service, alternative housing and other tools that frontline crime officials have said will strengthen the criminal justice system.
For criminals who are found to be “persistent dangerous felony offenders,” the bill doubles the minimum and maximum penalties that they face upon a second serious felony conviction, and triples those penalties (up to life in prison) after a third serious felony conviction.
“This bill will provide those in criminal justice the tools to put repeat violent criminals behind bars,” said Rep. David McCluskey. “This bill is a thoughtful tough on crime approach to the atrocities in Cheshire and New Britain.”
“We’ve listened to the serious concerns of people from West Hartford and around the state,” said Rep. Andrew Fleischmann. “These new laws will effectively and responsibly address those public safety concerns. In short, we’ve taken an important step towards increasing our safety.”
“Dangerous felony” crimes generally include murder, manslaughter, arson, kidnapping, 1st and 2nd-degree robbery, 1st and 3rd degree sexual assault, 1st-degree assault, home invasion, 1st-degree burglary, 2nd-degree burglary with a firearm, or any attempt to commit those crimes. The range of jail sentences for the most serious of these crimes generally ranges from 10 years to life. Under the proposed new law, those sentences will be either doubled or tripled for repeat offenders.
“This bill both keeps violent offenders in prison and funds the system appropriately,” Rep. Beth Bye said.
“This bill will provide real public safety,” said Sen. Jonathan Harris. “It will take violent criminals off the street quicker and for a longer period of time.”
The bill also provides $9,996,000 over the next year for a variety of law-enforcement tools, including:
- $681,000 to the Division of Criminal Justice for enhancing the prosecution of repeat offenders and administrative coordination and information technology capacity.
- $512,000 to the Public Defender Services Commission for enhancing the legal defense of indigent defendants and handling increased prosecutions.
- $5,232,000 to the Judicial Department from the General Fund for enhancing court operations and probation supervision of sexual offenders, including the use of GPS and polygraph technologies, and for increasing the capacity to serve outstanding warrants for violations of probation, providing truancy prevention and establishing a juvenile justice urban cities pilot program.
- $514,000 to the Department of Public Safety for hiring additional staff within the State Police Major Crime Squad.
- $2,147,000 to the Department of Correction for funding alternative housing, additional correction and parole officers, expansion of the use of global positioning system devices in the supervision of parolees, and additional staff for the Board of Pardons and Paroles to screen parole candidates and process files.
$910,000 to the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services for enhancing coordination and monitoring of community services for individuals served by the alternative supervision and intervention support teams, providing supportive housing for individuals served in the jail diversion or reentry programs, enhancing the women’s jail diversion program, and hiring an additional clinician to expand the capacity of the alternative drug intervention program.
March 18, 2008
House Education Committee Chairman Andrew Fleischmann (D-West Hartford) announced today that House Bill 5868, An Act Concerning Recruiting At High Schools, passed the Education Committee by a vote of 18-12.
“In public hearings and in person, people shared serious concerns about recruiting processes in Connecticut high schools,” Rep. Fleischmann said. “Under this legislation, families will know of their right to ‘opt out’ from providing their contact information to the Pentagon, and parents will have to be consulted before 14-year-olds are recruited,” Fleischmann added.
The new law prohibits the recruitment of any student less than fifteen years of age unless the recruiter has requested and received permission from the student's parent or guardian. All recruiters – from colleges, industries or the military – would have to obtain the permission of school administrators prior to recruiting at a school. Recruiters seeking appointments with individual students would be required to do so through school guidance offices. And any recruiter whose enlistment contract includes disclaimers of their promises would be required to reveal such disclaimers to students at the outset of the recruiting process.
“It’s really important that school administrators and parents know about recruitment activities – and that parents of freshmen be given the chance to discuss these life-changing decisions with their children,” Rep. Fleischmann said.
Under the proposed legislation, recruiters may only conduct meetings and presentations in designated areas of the school; school systems must let parents, guardians and students know that attendance at any recruiting meeting or presentation is voluntary. Another provision of the legislation requires written notification to parents of their right, under federal law, to opt out of the release of personal contact information to military recruiters.
The bill now goes to the floor of the House for further action.
Rep. Fleischmann represents the 18th Assembly District in West Hartford. He serves as Chairman of the Education Committee, Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee for Elementary and Secondary Education, and as a member of the Government Administration and Elections Committee. He is now serving his seventh term in the General Assembly. |
