gencourt

SB 140-FN - AS INTRODUCED

2025 SESSION

25-0995

09/11

SENATE BILL 140-FN

AN ACT establishing a domestic violence fatality review committee.

SPONSORS: Sen. Birdsell, Dist 19

COMMITTEE: Judiciary

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ANALYSIS

This bill establishes a domestic violence fatality review committee within the department of justice to conduct comprehensive, multidisciplinary reviews of deaths related to domestic violence. This bill also establishes a criminal penalty for intentionally disclosing information or records obtained from committee proceedings.

This bill is a request of the department of justice.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

25-0995

09/11

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five

AN ACT establishing a domestic violence fatality review committee.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 New Section; The Department of Justice; Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee. Amend RSA 21-M by inserting after section 16 the following new section:

21:16-a Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee.

I. There is hereby established the domestic violence fatality review committee within the department of justice to conduct comprehensive, multidisciplinary reviews of deaths related to domestic violence for the purpose of preventing domestic violence related fatalities through the identification of barriers to victim safety, the evaluation of the response by law enforcement and other government and non-government agencies and service delivery systems, and the creation of recommendations to improve the systemic and community response to domestic violence.

II. For the purpose of this section, a "domestic violence fatality" means a death which arises as a result of domestic violence as defined in RSA 173-B, RSA 631:2-b, or a fatality that, in the sole discretion of the domestic violence fatality review committee, was either directly or indirectly related to domestic violence.

III. The attorney general shall appoint the members of the domestic violence fatality review committee, who shall hold office for an indefinite term at the pleasure of the attorney general. The committee shall consist of the following members:

(a) The attorney general, or designee.

(b) The chief medical examiner, or designee.

(d) The director of the division for behavioral health, department of health and human services, or designee.

(e) The commissioner of the department of safety, or designee.

(f) A circuit court judge.

(g) A licensed medical provider who is knowledgeable concerning domestic violence injuries and deaths, including suicides.

(h) Two members of law enforcement, one representing a rural jurisdiction and one an urban jurisdiction.

(i) A representative of an organization providing civil legal services to victims of domestic violence.

(j) A representative of the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.

(k) A representative from a domestic violence crisis center.

(l) A county attorney or a prosecutor employed by a county attorney’s office.

(m) An attorney or police officer who prosecutes in circuit court.

(n) A prosecution-based victims’ assistance provider.

(o) A defense attorney.

(p) A provider of batterers intervention programming.

IV. The committee shall elect a chairperson from among its members. The chairperson shall serve for a term of 2 years.

V. The committee may create additional subcommittees as needed to achieve the committee’s mission. These subcommittees shall be subject to the same protections and responsibilities as the committee as established in this section. Membership of these subcommittees shall be determined by the chairperson.

VI. The committee's review of a case shall not be initiated until such time as the law enforcement criminal investigation has been completed or fully adjudicated, whichever comes later. Additionally, if, in the opinion of the attorney general, there exists the potential for civil litigation, the committee’s review of a case shall not be initiated before 3 years from the date of the incident under review.

VII. The attorney general, acting through the office of victim/witness assistance, as established in RSA 21-M:8-b, shall coordinate and provide administrative support to the committee.

VIII. The attorney general, acting through the office of victim/witness assistance, may solicit, request, review, inspect, and copy all information and records as defined to include, but not be limited to, testimony, documents, reports, reviews, recommendations, correspondence, and data from any individual or agency, including individuals with particular expertise that would be helpful to the review, representatives from those organizations or agencies that had contact with or provided services to the individuals involved in the case, or anyone else the attorney general identifies as relevant for the purpose of the review, and may provide any of the information and records to the members of the committee and invited guests; provided, however, no member of the committee or invited guests shall further distribute such information or records.

IX. Upon a recommendation of the committee, the attorney general, in his or her sole discretion, shall have the authority to subpoena witnesses or compel the production of information or records. The attorney general shall have the authority to enforce, if necessary, any subpoena by compelling production in the superior court.

X. The committee, members of the committee, invited guests, and their agents and employees, the attorney general, and other state employees at the department of justice shall maintain the confidentiality of all information and records pursuant to any applicable confidentiality laws including, but not limited to, information and records received that are governed by RSA 169-C:25, RSA 170-G:8-a and RSA 161-F:57 and may be required to complete a confidentiality agreement that prohibits any unauthorized dissemination of information or records except when disclosures may be necessary for the committee to carry out its duties. Within the department of justice, such information and records shall be solely accessible by the office of victim/witness assistance, the attorney general or the attorney general’s designee to the committee, and any attorney specially assigned to advise the committee.

XI. The information and records obtained and created in execution of the committee’s official functions including proceedings, opinions, and testimony by persons participating in or appearing before the committee, and deliberations by the committee relating to the review of any death are confidential, not subject to RSA 91-A, and shall not be used, divulged, or acquired by any other person for any other purpose, including, but not limited to, civil or criminal discovery, subpoena, employment investigation, or introduction into evidence in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding. Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed to limit or restrict the right to discover or use in any civil or criminal proceeding anything that is available from another source and entirely independent of the proceedings of the committee.

XII. The committee, members of the committee, invited guests, their agents and employees, the attorney general, and other state employees at the department of justice shall not be questioned, compelled to testify, or compelled to produce any evidence in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding regarding any matter involving the exercise of his or her official committee duties or regarding information presented in or opinions formed as a result of a meeting of the committee. Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed to prevent a member of the committee from testifying to information obtained independently of the committee or which is public information.

XIII. The committee, members of the committee, invited guests, their agents and employees, the attorney general, and other state employees at the department of justice, shall not be subject to, and shall be immune from, claims, suits, liability, damages, or any other recourse, civil or criminal, arising from any act, proceeding, decision, or determination undertaken or performed, or recommendation made, provided such persons acted in good faith and without criminal intent in carrying out their responsibilities, authority, duties, powers, and privileges of the offices conferred by this section upon them.

XIV. No organization, agency, or person furnishing information and records to the committee shall be liable in damages for such act to any person or subject to any other recourse, civil or criminal.

XV. Any person who intentionally discloses information or records obtained from committee proceedings shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.

XVI. The committee shall make a public biennial report, on or before the first day of October of each even-numbered year, beginning on October 1, 2026, to the governor, speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the senate, and the chief justice of the supreme court, describing any trends and patterns of domestic violence deaths, together with any recommendations for changes in law, policy, and practice that could prevent future deaths.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.

LBA

25-0995

Revised 1/27/25

SB 140-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

AN ACT establishing a domestic violence fatality review committee.

FISCAL IMPACT:


Estimated State Impact
	FY 2025	FY 2026	FY 2027	FY 2028
Revenue	$0	$0	$0	$0
Revenue Fund	None
Expenditures*	Indeterminable
Funding Source	General Fund
Appropriations*	$0	$0	$0	$0
Funding Source	None
Expenditure = Cost of bill Appropriation = Authorized funding to cover cost of bill

Estimated Political Subdivision Impact
	FY 2025	FY 2026	FY 2027	FY 2028
County Revenue	$0	$0	$0	$0
County Expenditures	Indeterminable
Local Revenue	$0	$0	$0	$0
Local Expenditures	Indeterminable

METHODOLOGY:

This bill adds, deletes, or modifies a criminal penalty, or changes statute to which there is a penalty for violation. Therefore, this bill may have an impact on the judicial and correctional systems, which could affect prosecution, incarceration, probation, and parole costs, for the state, as well as county and local governments. A summary of such costs can be found at: https://gencourt.state.nh.us/lba/Budget/Fiscal_Notes/JudicialCorrectionalCosts.pdf

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

Judicial Branch, Judicial Council, Department of Justice, Department of Corrections, New Hampshire Association of Counties, and New Hampshire Municipal Association