Direct transfer to treatment

AN ACT Relating to recognizing a court's authority to authorize a 1
defendant's direct transfer from jail to inpatient or residential 2
substance use disorder treatment; adding a new section to chapter 3
10.21 RCW; and creating a new section. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 10.21 6
RCW to read as follows: 7
(1) A judicial officer who establishes conditions of release for 8
a defendant under RCW 10.21.020 and 10.21.030 which includes payment 9
of bail may indicate on the order that the court will allow the 10
defendant to present a motion to modify the order to a personal 11
recognizance release with nonmonetary conditions and stay the 12
proceedings for the purpose of inpatient or residential treatment if:13
(a) The defendant has an offer of admission to a facility which 14
provides inpatient or residential substance use disorder treatment or 15
inpatient or residential co-occurring mental health and substance use 16
disorder treatment; and 17
(b) A trusted individual is available to escort the defendant 18
directly from jail to the treatment facility. 19
S-0187.2
SENATE BILL 5569
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Senators Gildon, Christian, and Hasegawa
Read first time 01/29/25. Referred to Committee on Law & Justice.
p. 1 SB 5569
(2) The court or defense shall immediately notify the recovery 1
navigator program under RCW 71.24.115 when an order is entered under 2
subsection (1) of this section. 3
(3) A defendant with an order under subsection (1) of this 4
section may bring the court a motion for pretrial release and to stay 5
the proceedings for the purpose of inpatient or residential treatment 6
at any time the defendant is able to satisfy the conditions specified 7
under subsection (1) of this section, including any additional 8
conditions established by the court. The defendant must affirm orally 9
or in writing that the defendant agrees to participate in the 10
treatment program, that the defendant will authorize the release of 11
information to satisfy the requirements of this section, and that the 12
defendant agrees to waive the right to a speedy trial until the stay 13
for treatment is lifted. If the court is satisfied, the court shall 14
immediately stay the criminal proceedings and order the defendant's 15
release consistent with this section. The order shall specify a 16
specific time for release when the defendant may be released directly 17
to the trusted individual for escort to the inpatient or residential 18
treatment facility. 19
(4) A jail receiving a release order under this section shall 20
release the defendant only to the custody of the trusted individual 21
and at the time indicated on the court order. A court order under 22
this section shall supersede any other holds on the defendant or 23
warrants from other jurisdictions. 24
(5) The inpatient or residential substance use disorder treatment 25
facility or inpatient or residential co-occurring mental health and 26
substance use disorder treatment facility shall notify the court when 27
the defendant is admitted to the program using a form supplied by the 28
court and shall notify the court and the parties by form again upon 29
the defendant's discharge from the program. The notification upon 30
discharge shall indicate whether the defendant has transitioned 31
successfully to the next level of care. 32
(6) Upon notification of the defendant's discharge from the 33
inpatient or residential substance use disorder treatment facility or 34
inpatient or residential co-occurring mental health and substance use 35
disorder treatment facility, the prosecutor may make a motion for the 36
court to lift the stay and summon the defendant to court for further 37
proceedings. If the notice indicates the defendant has transitioned 38
successfully to the next level of care, the prosecutor is encouraged 39
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to consider whether diversion or dismissal of the charge is 1
appropriate. 2
(7) A judicial officer may issue an order under subsection (1) of 3
this section on its own motion or the motion of any party in any 4
circumstance in which the judicial officer finds that there are 5
indications that the defendant would benefit from inpatient or 6
residential substance use disorder treatment or inpatient or 7
residential co-occurring mental health and substance use disorder 8
treatment and that the defendant can be released safely to an 9
inpatient or residential substance use disorder treatment facility or 10
inpatient or residential co-occurring mental health and substance use 11
disorder treatment facility. The court is not limited to 12
circumstances in which the defendant is charged with an offense under 13
chapter 69.50 RCW. 14
(8) A stay entered under this section is an excluded period for 15
the purpose of time for trial. The lifting of the stay creates a new 16
commencement date for the purpose of calculation of the defendant's 17
time for trial. 18
(9) For the purposes of this section, "trusted individual" 19
includes but is not limited to a person whose relation to the 20
defendant is that of a family member, member of the defense team, 21
health care worker, social worker, peer support specialist, case 22
manager, employee of the inpatient or residential treatment facility, 23
or other supportive individual. 24
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The administrative office of the courts 25
shall create or update court forms as needed to implement this act.26
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