ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Phoenix, Arizona
crimes; vulnerable or
incapacitated adults
Eliminates sentence
suspension and early release options for persons convicted of the new crime of
dangerous crimes against incapacitated or vulnerable adults (“dangerous
crimes”).
As defined by State statute, a vulnerable adult is “an individual who is eighteen years of age or older who is unable to protect himself from abuse, neglect or exploitation by others because of a physical or mental impairment” (A.R.S. § 46-451). State law includes specific provisions for the prosecution of persons who abuse a child or vulnerable adult; however, this law does not include all dangerous crimes, as defined in this bill, and permits sentence suspensions and early release options (A.R.S. §13-3623).
Arizona has an increasing
population of elderly citizens, some of whom have become incapacitated or
vulnerable. The Attorney General’s
office states that the increased penalties in S.B. 1047 are necessary to
protect the elderly and encourage prosecution of dangerous crimes.
Any potential fiscal impact
to the state general fund is undetermined at this time, although the
elimination of sentence suspension and early release options may increase the
number of people incarcerated by the Arizona Department of Corrections.
1. Permits the court, anytime before the date of trial, to allow an allegation that the defendant committed a dangerous crime against a vulnerable adult. However, if the allegation is made less then 20 days prior to trial, the court may disallow the allegation if the untimely submission is prejudicial to the defendant.
2. Excludes persons convicted of committing a dangerous crime from sentence suspension, probation, pardon or release.
3. Lists nine specific dangerous crimes that may be prosecuted as dangerous crimes.
4. Provides for a general effective date
Prepared by Senate Staff
January 18, 2002