Report to the General Assembly (Published)

Document Title

Report on the Development of Sexually Violent Predator Protocols for Initial Screening per § 37.2-903 (SB314/HB1271, 2012)

Author

Department of Corrections

Enabling Authority

Chapter 800 Enactment Clause 2. (Regular Session, 2012)

Executive Summary

In 2012, the Virginia General Assembly passed Senate Bill 314 and House Bill 1271 with an enactment clause directing the Department of Corrections (DOC), in conjunction with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS), to develop draft protocols for consideration by the 2013 General Assembly. Specifically, the second enactment clause of the legislation provides that DOC shall:

“…develop protocols to assess whether the individual meets the definition of a sexually violent predator and shall report to the General Assembly on protocol objectives, design, methodology, statistical considerations, embedded assumptions, risk assessments, and organization of the full assessment process. All measures shall be consistent with evidenced-based best practices. The primary tool of the protocols shall be a risk assessment instrument and corresponding reference score designated by the Commissioner. The Director shall submit the report to the Governor and the General Assembly by January 1, 2013.”