1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to crime prevention; creating a pilot project 
  1.3             for family group conferencing in Dakota county; 
  1.4             authorizing family group conferencing programs; 
  1.5             authorizing a grant program; requiring a report; 
  1.6             appropriating money. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  [PILOT PROJECT FOR FAMILY GROUP CONFERENCING IN 
  1.9   DAKOTA COUNTY.] 
  1.10     Subdivision 1.  [PILOT PROJECT ESTABLISHED.] By July 1, 
  1.11  1996, the commissioner of corrections shall establish a pilot 
  1.12  project in Dakota county to provide assistance to counties, 
  1.13  school districts, and cities in establishing family group 
  1.14  conferencing programs.  The pilot project must be administered 
  1.15  by a coordinator responsible for supervising and implementing 
  1.16  the project.  The coordinator shall cooperate with and provide 
  1.17  necessary assistance and training to county attorneys, local law 
  1.18  enforcement agencies, school districts, and community groups in 
  1.19  establishing family group conferencing programs under 
  1.20  subdivision 2. 
  1.21     Subd. 2.  [FAMILY GROUP CONFERENCING PROGRAMS.] A county 
  1.22  attorney, school district, or city in Dakota county, in 
  1.23  consultation with the coordinator and local law enforcement 
  1.24  agencies, may establish a family group conferencing program.  
  1.25  The program may provide forums where, as an alternative to 
  1.26  prosecution, certain individuals accused of having committed 
  2.1   crimes meet with the victim or victims of the alleged crime; 
  2.2   family members of the victim or victims, if appropriate; family 
  2.3   members of the offender, if appropriate; a law enforcement 
  2.4   official or prosecutor; and members of the community.  An 
  2.5   individual properly trained in moderating a family group 
  2.6   conference shall act as moderator of the conference.  The 
  2.7   conference must focus on the impact of the offense on the victim 
  2.8   and the community, and assign an appropriate sanction to the 
  2.9   offender.  An appropriate sanction may include reparation to the 
  2.10  victim or community, specified community service, or other 
  2.11  sanction agreed upon during the conference. 
  2.12     Subd. 3.  [CONFERENCE PARAMETERS.] A county or city 
  2.13  attorney, in consultation with the coordinator and local law 
  2.14  enforcement agencies, shall establish parameters for the 
  2.15  conferences.  The parameters must specify the types of offenders 
  2.16  and offenses eligible for the conferences, and the nature and 
  2.17  goals of the conferences.  Only certain offenders deemed 
  2.18  appropriate by the county attorney are eligible for the 
  2.19  conferences.  Decisions on eligibility shall be based on the 
  2.20  criminal history of the offender, the nature of the offense, the 
  2.21  danger posed by the offender to the victim and the community, 
  2.22  and the best interests of the victim and community.  
  2.23  Participation in the conference is voluntary, no offender or 
  2.24  victim may be required to participate in a conference.  A 
  2.25  decision to prosecute an offender who has refused to participate 
  2.26  in a conference may not be considered in determining the 
  2.27  voluntariness of an offender's decision to participate. 
  2.28     A prosecutor who offers an offender the opportunity to 
  2.29  participate in a conference retains the authority to prosecute 
  2.30  the offender if the offender refuses to participate in the 
  2.31  conference, chooses not to complete the conference, or fails to 
  2.32  comply with sanctions imposed at the conference.  
  2.33     Subd. 4.  [GRANTS AUTHORIZED.] The commissioner of 
  2.34  corrections, in consultation with the coordinator, may award 
  2.35  grants to aid in the establishment and implementation of family 
  2.36  group conferencing programs in Dakota county.  The commissioner 
  3.1   shall establish the criteria and procedure for the grants.  
  3.2      Subd. 5.  [REPORT REQUIRED.] By January 15, 1999, the 
  3.3   commissioner of corrections shall report to the chairs of the 
  3.4   senate and house of representatives committees having 
  3.5   jurisdiction over criminal justice policy on the effectiveness 
  3.6   of the pilot project and any family group conferencing programs 
  3.7   created under this section and the awarding of grants, if any, 
  3.8   under subdivision 4. 
  3.9      Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  3.10     $200,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
  3.11  commissioner of corrections to administer the pilot project and 
  3.12  award grants under section 1.  This sum is available until 
  3.13  expended.