Confessions are powerful evidence of guilt. Therefore, this Act adopts the Uniform Law Commission's Uniform Electronic Recordation of Custodial Interrogations Act to promote truth-finding, promote efficiency, and protect constitutional values. Specifically, this Act mandates electronic recording of the custodial interrogation process by law enforcement when the interrogation relates to a crime allegedly committed by an adult or a delinquent act allegedly committed by a child. The type of recording required, either audio or audio and video, depends on the location of the custodial interrogation. Recognizing that a blanket requirement of recording electronically all interrogations is not feasible, this Act provides 5 exceptions to the recording mandate: (1) exigent circumstances, (2) an individual's refusal to be recorded, (3) interrogations occurring in other jurisdictions, (4) when the interrogator or interrogator's supervisor reasonably believes electronic recording would reveal a confidential informant's identity or jeopardize the safety of the officer, the individual interrogated, or another individual, and (5) equipment malfunctions. Further, this Act requires the prosecution to notify the defense of an intention to introduce an unrecorded statement and of the exception that permitted the lack of recording. This Act requires the prosecution to prove by clear and convincing evidence that an exception applies. This Act also prescribes remedies for violations of the electronic recording requirement, including the giving of a cautionary instruction to the jury. Additionally, this Act provides civil immunity for both law enforcement officers and law enforcement agencies. Finally, this Act requires the Council on Police Training to adopt rules to implement this Act, which are to be enforced by each law enforcement agency.
Sponsored bills
This Act expands the Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust’s responsibility to review deadly use of force incidents by law enforcement by adding review of cases involving serious physical injury. It also requires that if the Division issues a public report on the use of force, the report must include the race of the law enforcement officer who used force, the race of the individual on whom force was used, and whether race was a relevant or motivating factor.
This Act expands eligibility for mandatory expungement of adult and juvenile cases by doing all of the following: 1. Aligns eligibility for juvenile expungement so that all cases eligible for adult expungement are eligible for juvenile expungement. 2. Allows all cases terminated in favor of the accused and cases for underage possession or consumption of alcohol under § 904(e) or (f) of Title 4, possession of marijuana under § 4764 of Title 16, or possession of drug paraphernalia under § 4771 of Title 16 to be expunged, regardless of prior or subsequent adjudications or convictions. 3. Repeals § 4764(j) of Title 16 because this Act makes cases for marijuana possession eligible for mandatory expungement under § 1017 of Title 10 and § 4374 of Title 11. 4. If a person has no prior or subsequent convictions, makes a case for drug possession under § 4756 of Title 16 eligible for mandatory expungement 5 years after conviction. Juvenile adjudications of delinquency for drug possession under § 4756 of Title 16 are already eligible for mandatory expungement so no corresponding change is necessary to § 1017 of Title 10. 5. If a person has no prior or subsequent convictions, makes additional felony convictions eligible for mandatory expungement 10 years after conviction. Juvenile adjudications of delinquency for these felonies are already eligible for mandatory expungement so no corresponding change is necessary to § 1017 of Title 10. 6. Applies existing exceptions for eligibility for mandatory expungement because of the status of the victim to the offenses that become eligible under this Act. 7. Makes corresponding changes to other expungement sections in Title 10. This Act adds a misdemeanor conviction for official misconduct to the offenses that are ineligible for mandatory expungement under § 4373(b) of Title 11. This Act does not make any offenses that are currently ineligible for mandatory expungement under § 4373(b) of Title 11 eligible for mandatory expungement. This Act takes effect on January 1, 2022. Section 10 of this Act aligns this Act with the changes to § 4373 of Title 11 if Senate Substitute No. 1 for Senate Bill No. 38 is also enacted into law in 2021. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This bill prohibits law-enforcement agencies from releasing or publishing or causing to be released or published the name of any juvenile or any image depicting a juvenile, including displaying such image on any publicly maintained social media page or website, unless the juvenile is charged with a violent felony, and release or publication of the photograph is necessary to protect the public’s safety.
This Act amends the maps of the district boundaries for the House of Representative and Senate Districts in the Delaware General Assembly in response to the 2020 U.S. Decennial Census. This Act also includes provisions to effectuate changes in Delaware law necessitated by the 2020 U.S. Decennial Census. Districts are designated by census blocks. A map of Delaware by census block is located on the U.S. Census website: https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st10_de/censusblock_maps/. The final House of Representatives Maps (October 28, 2021) and data are located on the General Assembly website: https://legis.delaware.gov/redistricting/2022finalhousedistricts. The final Senate Maps (October 25, 2021) and the Census Block Breakdown by Senate District with the related census tracts and census blocks descriptions and data are located on the General Assembly website: https://legis.delaware.gov/Redistricting/2022FinalSenateDistricts.
This Act establishes Juneteenth as a State holiday. Juneteenth commemorates the emancipation of the last enslaved African Americans in the United States. The Act adds Juneteenth as a legal holiday and reduces the number of floating holidays from 2 to 1. The two floating holidays were created by the 145th General Assembly as replacements for Presidents Day and Columbus Day. This Act replaces the floating holiday that replaced Columbus Day with a legal holiday to celebrate Juneteenth. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Over 80% of pharmaceuticals in the United States are purchased through pharmacy benefits manager ("PBM") networks. PBMs serve as intermediaries between health plans, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and pharmacies or pharmacists, and PBMs establish networks for patients to receive reimbursement for drugs. Given the scope of PBMs in the healthcare delivery system, this Act is designed to provide enhanced oversight and transparency as it relates to PBMs. Specifically, this Act does the following: (1) If a PBM denies an appeal for reimbursement subject to maximum allowable cost pricing, requires the PBM to provide the national drug code number of wholesalers in Delaware that have the drug in stock below maximum allowable cost. (2) Authorizes a pharmacy or pharmacist to decline to dispense a prescription drug or provide a pharmacy service to a patient if the amount reimbursed by a PBM is less than the pharmacy acquisition cost. If a pharmacy or pharmacist declines to provide a drug or service, the pharmacy or pharmacist must inform the patient that the pharmacy or pharmacist did this because of the costs of providing the drug or service and provide the patient with a list of pharmacies in the area that may provide the drug or service. (3) Requires PBMs to provide a reasonably adequate and accessible pharmacy benefits manager network. (4) Increases transparency by requiring PBMs to provide reports to the Insurance Commissioner on network adequacy and the amount of rebates received by PBMs to provide reports to the Insurance Commissioner on network adequacy and the amount of rebates received by PBMs and distributed to insurers or patients. (5) Prohibits PBMs from engaging in certain conduct, such as spread pricing, false advertising, and reimbursing a pharmacist or pharmacy in an amount less than the PBM reimburses itself or an affiliate for the same drug or service. If a PBM engages in prohibited conduct, the Insurance Commissioner is authorized to deny, suspend, or revoke the PBM's registration under § 3355A of Title 18 or impose penalties or take other enforcement action under § 3359A of Title 18. (6) Clarifies that the Insurance Commissioner is authorized to deny an application for registration filed by a PBM. (7) Increases the registration and renewal fee to be paid by a PBM to better reflect the cost of the registration and renewal process and better align with the fee assessed by other states that require PBMs to register. (8) Transfers § 3359A of Title 18 (regarding penalties and enforcement) to a separate subchapter focused on prohibited practices, penalties, and enforcement. In addition, this Act makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual. Finally, this Act requires a greater than majority vote for passage because § 10 of Article VIII of the Delaware Constitution requires the affirmative vote of three-fifths of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly to increase the effective rate of any tax levied or license fee imposed.
This Act supports children who spent part or all of their teen years in the State's foster care system to access higher education by providing a tuition waiver program to cover the cost of tuition, fees, and (where offered) room and board at a public Delaware college or university.
This Act permits a candidate committee established by a candidate for public office to pay reasonable and necessary expenses for the care of a candidate’s child or children when care is necessary in connection with the candidate’s campaign activities. This Act also makes changes to the current law to make it consistent with the Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act mandates that the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control and the Division of Public Health establish maximum contaminant levels for specific contaminants found in drinking water in this state. Such contaminants include PFOA and PFOS, which are man-made chemicals. In certain studies, these chemicals were found to be associated with increased risks of chronic diseases. The Environmental Protection Agency, thus far, has not established a maximum contaminant levels, but have issued health advisories. The establishment of maximum contaminant levels is essential in order to protect the health and safety of all Delawareans from contaminants in drinking water.