HB 1511 — 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.

PRINTER'S NO.   1767

                     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 AND RIGBY,
        MAY 28, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, MAY 29, 2025


                                       AN ACT
 1   Amending Title 44 (Law and Justice) of the Pennsylvania
 2      Consolidated Statutes, providing for miscellaneous provisions
 3      and for violent incident clearance and technological
 4      investigative methods; establishing the Violent Incident
 5      Clearance and Technological Investigative Methods Program;
 6      and imposing duties on the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime
 7      and Delinquency.
 8      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 9   hereby enacts as follows:
10      Section 1.     Title 44 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
11   Statutes is amended by adding a part to read:
12                                     PART V
13                          MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
14   Chapter
15      81.     Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
16             Investigative Methods
17                                 CHAPTER 81
18                       VIOLENT INCIDENT CLEARANCE AND
19                    TECHNOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIVE METHODS
 1   Sec.
 2   8101.   Definitions.
 3   8102.   Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
 4                   Investigative Methods Program.
 5   8103.   Reporting.
 6   8104.   Evaluation.
 7   § 8101.    Definitions.
 8      The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
 9   shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
10   context clearly indicates otherwise:
11      "Cleared by arrest."      Referring to a case in which a law
12   enforcement agency reports that the case is solved and closed
13   for crime reporting purposes, when at least one individual has
14   been arrested, charged with the commission of the offense and
15   turned over to the court for prosecution, whether following
16   arrest, court summons or police notice.
17      "Cleared by exceptional means."        Referring to a case in which
18   a law enforcement agency has:
19             (1)   identified the offender;
20             (2)   gathered enough evidence to support an arrest, make
21      a charge and turn over the offender to the court for
22      prosecution;
23             (3)   identified the offender's exact location so that the
24      offender could be taken into custody immediately; and
25             (4)   encountered a circumstance outside the control of
26      the law enforcement agency that prohibits the law enforcement
27      agency from arresting, charging and prosecuting the offender.
28      "Commission."      The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and
29   Delinquency.
30      "Homicide."      Either of the following:

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 1             (1)   Murder of the first degree as defined in 18 Pa.C.S.
 2      § 2502(a) (relating to murder).
 3             (2)   Murder of the second degree as defined in 18 Pa.C.S.
 4      § 2502(b).
 5      "Law enforcement agency."      A public agency of a political
 6   subdivision having general police powers and charged with
 7   investigating and making arrests in connection with violent
 8   crimes.
 9      "Program."      The Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
10   Investigative Methods Program established under section 8102(a).
11      "Violent crime."      A crime of violence as defined in 42
12   Pa.C.S. § 9714(g) (relating to sentences for second and
13   subsequent offenses).
14   § 8102.    Violent Incident Clearance and Technological
15                   Investigative Methods Program.
16      (a)    Establishment.--The Violent Incident Clearance and
17   Technological Investigative Methods Program is established in
18   the commission.
19      (b)    Purpose.--The program shall provide grants to law
20   enforcement agencies so that law enforcement agencies have the
21   necessary tools and resources to improve clearance rates of
22   homicides and other violent crimes.
23      (c)    Applications.--The commission shall prescribe the form
24   and manner in which an application may be submitted to receive a
25   grant under the program. The commission shall accept
26   applications on an annual basis.
27      (d)    Use of grants.--A law enforcement agency may use a grant
28   under the program for any of the following:
29             (1)   Hiring, retaining and training personnel to
30      investigate homicides and other violent crimes.

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 1            (2)   Acquiring, upgrading or replacing technology or
 2      equipment related to evidence collection, evidence processing
 3      and forensic testing related to homicides and other violent
 4      crimes.
 5            (3)   Hiring, retaining and training personnel for the
 6      collection, processing and forensic testing of evidence
 7      related to homicides and other violent crimes.
 8            (4)   Hiring, retaining and training of personnel to
 9      analyze homicides and other violent crimes, including the
10      temporal and geographic trends.
11            (5)   Upgrading record management systems to achieve
12      compliance with the reporting requirements specified in this
13      chapter.
14            (6)   Supporting witnesses to help in the investigations
15      of homicides and other violent crimes.
16            (7)   Ensuring compliance with the reporting requirements
17      of this chapter.
18      (e)   Supplemental nature of grants.--Grants allocated through
19   the program shall be used to supplement and not supplant
20   existing funding for law enforcement agencies.
21      (f)   Subsequent applications.--Nothing in this section shall
22   be construed to prohibit a law enforcement agency from making an
23   application to receive a grant under the program in a subsequent
24   year for the same purpose and amount as in the prior year.
25      (g)   Geographic diversity.--
26            (1)   The commission shall ensure that grants awarded
27      under the program are geographically dispersed throughout
28      this Commonwealth.
29            (2)   The commission shall reserve not less than 10% of
30      available grants under the program for law enforcement

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 1      agencies serving rural communities.
 2      (h)    Multijurisdictional applications.--Two or more otherwise
 3   eligible law enforcement agencies representing different
 4   jurisdictions within this Commonwealth may submit a joint
 5   application for a grant under this program.
 6   § 8103.    Reporting.
 7      Each grant recipient under the program shall submit a report
 8   to the commission annually in the form and manner determined by
 9   the commission. At a minimum, each report shall contain the
10   following:
11             (1)   The fraction of cases in each offense type that were
12      cleared by arrest and cleared by exceptional means.
13             (2)   For each case included in paragraph (1), the year
14      that the offense was committed and the year that the offense
15      was cleared.
16             (3)   The number of personnel, including sworn law
17      enforcement officers and nonsworn civilian staff, hired or
18      assigned to investigate homicides and other violent crimes.
19             (4)   The number of personnel hired or assigned to
20      collect, process and test forensic evidence.
21             (5)   The description of any training developed or
22      implemented.
23             (6)   The description of any technology or record
24      management systems purchased, acquired or upgraded.
25             (7)   The percentage of the grant award utilized for each
26      eligible use specified in this chapter.
27   § 8104.    Evaluation.
28      (a)    Purpose.--The commission shall evaluate the program to
29   help identify:
30             (1)   whether the objectives of the program have been met;

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 1      and
 2            (2)   the program's impact, strengths and areas of
 3      potential improvement.
 4      (b)   Contents.--Each evaluation of the program shall include
 5   the following:
 6            (1)   Performance metrics, which must include:
 7                  (i)    The fraction of cases in each offense category
 8            that were cleared by arrest and cleared by exceptional
 9            means.
10                  (ii)    The average duration between the date of the
11            offense and the date of the clearance for each offense
12            category included in the reporting under this chapter.
13                  (iii)    The percentage of the award utilized for each
14            eligible use.
15            (2)   Program assessment, which must include an analysis
16      of:
17                  (i)    Practices implemented by grant recipients under
18            the program that the commission deems to be successful in
19            improving clearance rates.
20                  (ii)    Areas for improvement that would enhance the
21            impact of the program specifically and increase clearance
22            rates generally.
23      (c)   Submittal.--No later than one year after the effective
24   date of this subsection and by December 31 of each year
25   thereafter, the commission shall submit an evaluation in
26   accordance with this section to:
27            (1)   The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
28      Appropriations Committee of the Senate.
29            (2)   The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
30      Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives.

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1            (3)   The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
2      Judiciary Committee of the Senate.
3            (4)   The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
4      Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives.
5      (d)   Limitation on administrative expenses.--The commission
6   may not expend more than 3% of money appropriated to the
7   commission for the program on administrative expenses.
8      Section 2.    This act shall take effect in 60 days.




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