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PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 1767 PRINTER'S NO. 1872
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 1511
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY BRIGGS, KERWIN, HILL-EVANS, HANBIDGE, PIELLI,
HOWARD, M. BROWN, BOYD, DELOZIER, SANCHEZ, KHAN, DONAHUE,
KUZMA, BOROWSKI, SHUSTERMAN, PARKER, CEPEDA-FREYTIZ,
DOUGHERTY, KAIL, COOPER, ECKER, CIRESI, RIGBY AND MADSEN,
MAY 28, 2025
AS AMENDED ON SECOND CONSIDERATION, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
JUNE 9, 2025
AN ACT
Amending Title 44 (Law and Justice) of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes, providing for miscellaneous provisions
and for violent incident clearance and technological
investigative methods; establishing the Violent Incident
Clearance and Technological Investigative Methods Program;
and imposing duties on the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime
and Delinquency.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Title 44 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
Statutes is amended by adding a part to read:
PART V
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Chapter
81. Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
Investigative Methods
CHAPTER 81
VIOLENT INCIDENT CLEARANCE AND
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TECHNOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIVE METHODS
Sec.
8101. Definitions.
8102. Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
Investigative Methods Program.
8103. Reporting.
8104. Evaluation.
§ 8101. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Cleared by arrest." Referring to a case AN OFFENSE in which
a law enforcement agency reports that the case is solved and
closed for crime reporting purposes, when at least one
individual has been arrested, charged with the commission of the
offense and turned over to the court for prosecution, whether
following arrest, court summons or police notice.
"Cleared by exceptional means." Referring to a case AN
OFFENSE in which a law enforcement agency has:
(1) identified the offender;
(2) gathered enough evidence to support an arrest, make
a charge and turn over the offender to the court for
prosecution;
(3) identified the offender's exact location so that the
offender could be taken into custody immediately; and
(4) encountered a circumstance outside the control of
the law enforcement agency that prohibits the law enforcement
agency from arresting, charging and prosecuting the offender.
"Commission." The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and
Delinquency.
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"Homicide." Either of the following:
(1) Murder of the first degree as defined in 18 Pa.C.S.
§ 2502(a) (relating to murder).
(2) Murder of the second degree as defined in 18 Pa.C.S.
§ 2502(b).
"Law enforcement agency." A public agency of a political
subdivision having general police powers and charged with
investigating and making arrests in connection with violent
crimes.
"Program." The Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
Investigative Methods Program established under section 8102(a).
"Violent crime." A crime of violence as defined in 42
Pa.C.S. § 9714(g) (relating to sentences for second and
subsequent offenses).
§ 8102. Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
Investigative Methods Program.
(a) Establishment.--The Violent Incident Clearance and
Technological Investigative Methods Program is established in
the commission.
(b) Purpose.--The program shall provide grants to law
enforcement agencies so that law enforcement agencies have the
necessary tools and resources to improve clearance rates of
homicides and other violent crimes.
(c) Applications.--The commission shall prescribe the form
and manner in which an application may be submitted to receive a
grant under the program. The commission shall accept
applications on an annual basis.
(d) Use of grants.--A law enforcement agency may use a grant
under the program for any of the following:
(1) Hiring, retaining and training personnel to
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investigate homicides and other violent crimes.
(2) Acquiring, upgrading or replacing technology or
equipment related to evidence collection, evidence processing
and forensic testing related to homicides and other violent
crimes.
(3) Hiring, retaining and training personnel for the
collection, processing and forensic testing of evidence
related to homicides and other violent crimes.
(4) Hiring, retaining and training of personnel to
analyze homicides and other violent crimes, including the
temporal and geographic trends.
(5) Upgrading record management systems to achieve
compliance with the reporting requirements specified in this
chapter.
(6) Supporting witnesses to help in the investigations
of homicides and other violent crimes.
(7) Ensuring compliance with the reporting requirements
of this chapter.
(e) Supplemental nature of grants.--Grants allocated through
the program shall be used to supplement and not supplant
existing funding for law enforcement agencies.
(f) Subsequent applications.--Nothing in this section shall
be construed to prohibit a law enforcement agency from making an
application to receive a grant under the program in a subsequent
year for the same purpose and amount as in the prior year.
(g) Geographic diversity.--
(1) The commission shall ensure that grants awarded
under the program are geographically dispersed throughout
this Commonwealth.
(2) The commission shall reserve not less than 10% of
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available grants under the program for law enforcement
agencies serving rural communities.
(h) Multijurisdictional applications.--Two or more otherwise
eligible law enforcement agencies representing different
jurisdictions within this Commonwealth may submit a joint
application for a grant under this program.
§ 8103. Reporting.
Each grant recipient under the program shall submit a report
to the commission annually in the form and manner determined by
the commission. At a minimum, each report shall contain the
following:
(1) The fraction of cases in each offense type that were
cleared by arrest and cleared by exceptional means.
(2) For each case included in paragraph (1), the year
that the offense was committed and the year that the offense
was cleared.
(1) THE NUMBER OF CRIMINAL INCIDENTS INVOLVING ONE OR
MORE HOMICIDES OR VIOLENT OFFENSES AS FOLLOWS:
(I) THE NUMBER OF HOMICIDES OR VIOLENT OFFENSES PER
CRIMINAL INCIDENT.
(II) THE NUMBER OF OFFENSES INVOLVED IN EACH
CRIMINAL INCIDENT THAT WERE CLEARED BY ARREST.
(III) THE NUMBER OF OFFENSES INVOLVED IN EACH
CRIMINAL INCIDENT THAT WERE CLEARED BY EXCEPTIONAL MEANS.
(2) FOR EACH OFFENSE IN PARAGRAPH (1), THE DATE THE
OFFENSE WAS COMMITTED AND THE DATE THE OFFENSE WAS CLEARED.
(3) The number of personnel, including sworn law
enforcement officers and nonsworn civilian staff, hired or
assigned to investigate homicides and other violent crimes.
(4) The number of personnel hired or assigned to
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collect, process and test forensic evidence.
(5) The description of any training developed or
implemented.
(6) The description of any technology or record
management systems purchased, acquired or upgraded.
(7) The percentage of the grant award utilized for each
eligible use specified in this chapter.
§ 8104. Evaluation.
(a) Purpose.--The commission shall evaluate the program to
help identify:
(1) whether the objectives of the program have been met;
and
(2) the program's impact, strengths and areas of
potential improvement.
(b) Contents.--Each evaluation of the program shall include
the following:
(1) Performance metrics, which must include:
(i) The fraction of cases in each offense OFFENSES
IN EACH category that were cleared by arrest and cleared
by exceptional means.
(ii) The average duration between the date of the
offense and the date of the clearance for each offense
category included in the reporting under this chapter.
(iii) The percentage of the award utilized for each
eligible use.
(2) Program assessment, which must include an analysis
of:
(i) Practices implemented by grant recipients under
the program that the commission deems to be successful in
improving clearance rates.
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(ii) Areas for improvement that would enhance the
impact of the program specifically and increase clearance
rates generally.
(c) Submittal.--No later than one year after the effective
date of this subsection and by December MARCH 31 of each year
thereafter, the commission shall submit an evaluation in
accordance with this section to:
(1) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Appropriations Committee of the Senate.
(2) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives.
(3) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Judiciary Committee of the Senate.
(4) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives.
(d) Limitation on administrative expenses.--The commission
may not expend more than 3% of money appropriated to the
commission for the program on administrative expenses.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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