Eric Magnuson
The independent task force charged with studying the state’s civil commitment program for sex offenders has recommended setting up a separate court to specifically deal with offenders requests for release from the program.
The 15-member body issued its report to the Department of Human Services today. In it, the group says the burden should be on the prosecuting authority to show why someone should remained locked up in a secure facility.
Further, the group says an independent, centralized panel should determine if each individual meets the criteria for civil commitment. The panel would be staffed by trained psychologist and psychiatrists and corrections experts. That recommendation would not be binding, but if the county attorney chose to challenge it, it would be admissible in court.
The court would be staffed by senior judges who do not stand for re-election and would specialize only in civil commitment petitions.
The state should also work to develop and disseminate a set of standards and measurement tools for sex offenders. Those standards should be used to help chart the course of an individual’s commitment and rehabilitation.
“We can’t just lock these people up,” said Eric Magnuson, the former chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court and the co-chair of the task force. “Severe confinement inhibits treatment. We have to give these people responsibility. We can’t have them take tests in a holding cell.”
The taskforce also says offenders should have access to a panel of paid, trained defense attorneys for representation. And, the sentences should be reviewed every two years to determine if the time is warranted and if the person can be transferred to a less secure facility.
Magnuson said one thing became clear during the several meetings the taskforce had to discuss the civil commitment program.
“We need to rationalize the process, make it more objective and eliminate the influence of politics,” he said. “To do that we need professionals making professional judgments that are insulated from public opinion. If we can achieve that, the decisions should be clearer, more consistent and hopefully fair.”
The report will also be distributed to the legislative leadership in the respective parties. Magnuson hopes the report will form the basis of a bill in the next session.
Later this month, a U.S. district judge will hear arguments on the constitutionality of the program as part of a class action suit.
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