                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

CRC ASSESSMENT OF PRISONERS OR DEFENDANTS ELIGIBLE FOR COMMITMENT AS SEXUALLY
VIOLENT PREDATORS; MENTAL HEALTH EXAMINATION; RECOMMENDATION (§ 37.2-904)

A. Within 180 days of receiving from the Director the name of a prisoner or
defendant who has been assessed by the Director pursuant to &#xA7; 37.2-903, the
CRC shall (i) complete its assessment of the prisoner or defendant for possible
commitment pursuant to subsection B and (ii) forward its written recommendation
regarding the prisoner or defendant to the Attorney General pursuant to
subsection C.

B. CRC assessments of eligible prisoners or defendants shall include a mental
health examination, including a personal interview, of the prisoner or defendant
by a licensed psychiatrist or a licensed clinical psychologist who is designated
by the Commissioner, skilled in the diagnosis and risk assessment of sex
offenders, knowledgeable about the treatment of sex offenders, and not a member
of the CRC. If the prisoner&#8217;s or defendant&#8217;s name was forwarded to
the CRC based upon an evaluation by a licensed psychiatrist or licensed clinical
psychologist, a different licensed psychiatrist or licensed clinical
psychologist shall perform the examination for the CRC. The licensed
psychiatrist or licensed clinical psychologist shall determine whether the
prisoner or defendant is a sexually violent predator, as defined in &#xA7;
37.2-900, and forward the results of this evaluation and any supporting
documents to the CRC for its review.
			The CRC assessment may be based on:
			An actuarial evaluation, clinical evaluation, or any other information or
evaluation determined by the CRC to be relevant, including but not limited to a
review of (i) the prisoner&#8217;s or defendant&#8217;s institutional history
and treatment record, if any; (ii) his criminal background; and (iii) any other
factor that is relevant to the determination of whether he is a sexually violent
predator.

C. Following the examination and review conducted pursuant to subsection B, the
CRC shall recommend that the prisoner or defendant (i) be committed as a
sexually violent predator pursuant to this chapter; (ii) not be committed, but
be placed in a conditional release program as a less restrictive alternative; or
(iii) not be committed because he does not meet the definition of a sexually
violent predator. To assist the Attorney General in his review, the Department
of Corrections, the CRC, and the psychiatrist or psychologist who conducts the
mental health examination pursuant to this section shall provide the Attorney
General with all evaluation reports, prisoner records, criminal records, medical
files, and any other documentation relevant to determining whether a prisoner or
defendant is a sexually violent predator.

D. Pursuant to clause (ii) of subsection C, the CRC may recommend that a
prisoner or defendant enter a conditional release program if it finds that (i)
he does not need inpatient treatment, but needs outpatient treatment and
monitoring to prevent his condition from deteriorating to a degree that he would
need inpatient treatment; (ii) appropriate outpatient supervision and treatment
are reasonably available; (iii) there is significant reason to believe that, if
conditionally released, he would comply with the conditions specified; and (iv)
conditional release will not present an undue risk to public safety.

E. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any mental health professional
employed or appointed pursuant to subsection B or &#xA7; 37.2-907 shall be
permitted to copy and possess any presentence or postsentence reports and victim
impact statements. The mental health professional shall not disseminate the
contents of the reports or the actual reports to any person or entity and shall
only utilize the reports for use in examinations, creating reports, and
testifying in any proceedings pursuant to this article.

F. If the CRC deems it necessary to have the services of additional experts in
order to complete its review of the prisoner or defendant, the Commissioner
shall appoint such qualified experts as are needed.

HISTORY: 1999, cc. 946, 985, § 37.1-70.5; 2001, c. 776; 2003, cc. 989, 1018;
2004, c. 764; 2005, cc. 716, 914; 2006, cc. 863, 914; 2007, c. 876; 2009, c.
740; 2011, c. 42; 2012, cc. 668, 800.