1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to corrections; establishing a pilot project 
  1.3             in Dakota county to assist counties, school districts, 
  1.4             and cities to establish family group conferencing 
  1.5             programs; diverting alleged offenders; providing for 
  1.6             grants to be used in programs in the first judicial 
  1.7             district; appropriating money. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  [PILOT PROJECT FOR FAMILY GROUP CONFERENCING IN 
  1.10  DAKOTA COUNTY.] 
  1.11     Subdivision 1.  [PILOT PROJECT ESTABLISHED.] By July 1, 
  1.12  1997, the commissioner of corrections shall establish a pilot 
  1.13  project in Dakota county to provide assistance to counties, 
  1.14  school districts, and cities in the first judicial district in 
  1.15  establishing family group conferencing programs.  The pilot 
  1.16  project must be administered by a coordinator responsible for 
  1.17  supervising and implementing the project.  The coordinator shall 
  1.18  cooperate with and provide necessary assistance and training to 
  1.19  county attorneys, local law enforcement agencies, school 
  1.20  districts, and community groups in establishing family group 
  1.21  conferencing programs under subdivision 2. 
  1.22     Subd. 2.  [FAMILY GROUP CONFERENCING PROGRAMS.] A county 
  1.23  attorney, school district, or city in the first judicial 
  1.24  district, in consultation with the coordinator and local law 
  1.25  enforcement agencies, may establish a family group conferencing 
  1.26  program.  The program may provide forums where, as an 
  2.1   alternative to prosecution, certain individuals accused of 
  2.2   having committed crimes meet with the victim or victims of the 
  2.3   alleged crime; family members of the victim or victims, if 
  2.4   appropriate; family members of the offender, if appropriate; a 
  2.5   law enforcement official or prosecutor; and members of the 
  2.6   community.  An individual properly trained in moderating a 
  2.7   family group conference shall act as moderator of the 
  2.8   conference.  The conference must focus on the impact of the 
  2.9   offense on the victim and the community and assign an 
  2.10  appropriate sanction to the offender.  An appropriate sanction 
  2.11  may include reparation to the victim or community, specified 
  2.12  community service, or other sanction agreed upon during the 
  2.13  conference. 
  2.14     Subd. 3.  [CONFERENCE PARAMETERS.] A county or city 
  2.15  attorney, in consultation with the coordinator and local law 
  2.16  enforcement agencies, shall establish parameters for the 
  2.17  conferences.  The parameters must specify the types of offenders 
  2.18  and offenses eligible for the conferences and the nature and 
  2.19  goals of the conferences.  Only certain offenders deemed 
  2.20  appropriate by the county attorney are eligible for the 
  2.21  conferences.  Decisions on eligibility shall be based on the 
  2.22  criminal history of the offender, the nature of the offense, the 
  2.23  danger posed by the offender to the victim and the community, 
  2.24  and the best interests of the victim and community.  
  2.25  Participation in the conference is voluntary, no offender or 
  2.26  victim may be required to participate in a conference.  A 
  2.27  decision to prosecute an offender who has refused to participate 
  2.28  in a conference may not be considered in determining the 
  2.29  voluntariness of an offender's decision to participate. 
  2.30     Subd. 4.  [GRANTS AUTHORIZED.] The commissioner of 
  2.31  corrections, in consultation with the coordinator, may award 
  2.32  grants to aid in the establishment and implementation of family 
  2.33  group conferencing programs in the first judicial district.  The 
  2.34  commissioner shall establish the criteria and procedure for the 
  2.35  grants and shall require that any entity awarded a grant to 
  2.36  establish a program have clearly established neighborhood, 
  3.1   community, and family measures of success of the program and 
  3.2   report to the commissioner on the achievement of these outcomes 
  3.3   on or before December 31, 1998. 
  3.4      Subd. 5.  [REPORT REQUIRED.] By January 15, 1999, the 
  3.5   commissioner of corrections shall report to the chairs of the 
  3.6   senate and house of representatives committees having 
  3.7   jurisdiction over criminal justice policy on the effectiveness 
  3.8   of the pilot project and any family group conferencing programs 
  3.9   created under this section and the awarding of grants, if any, 
  3.10  under subdivision 4. 
  3.11     Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  3.12     $95,000 is appropriated to the commissioner of corrections 
  3.13  for distribution as grants to aid in the establishment and 
  3.14  implementation of family group conferencing programs in Dakota 
  3.15  county in the first judicial district to be available for the 
  3.16  biennium ending June 30, 1999.