The PJP Update, Positive Justice Project (July 2017)

CALIFORNIA
On May 31, SB 239—proposed legislation to modernize California HIV criminal laws—passed out of the California Senate and was referred to the California Assembly. The bill successfully made it through the Public Safety and Health Committees in the California Assembly, and will likely be heard in Assembly Appropriations in August. The most current version of the bill can be found here. Members of Californians for HIV Criminalization Reform are currently organizing in-district meets with members of the Assembly to advocate for the bill’s passage. The bill is a vast improvement over current law, in particular eliminating the felony punishment of sex workers arrested for solicitation while living with HIV and retroactively vacating felony convictions of sex workers previously convicted under this section of California law. 

The bill has undergone changes as it has progressed through different committees, including the addition of a "reckless exposure" provision, which makes engagement in "particularized conduct that poses a substantial risk of transmission of an infectious or communicable disease" in violation of health officer instructions a misdemeanor. The conduct must occur within 96 hours of the instruction in order to be a violation and the provision is only applicable in "circumstances that make securing a quarantine or health officer order infeasible." Given the lack of an intent requirement and terminology that remains vague or undefined, it is hoped this "reckless exposure" provision can be further narrowed to ensure it is not applied to already-marginalized populations, such as undocumented immigrants and sex workers. 

If your organization is interested in supporting modernization of California's HIV criminal laws, we invite you to join Californians for HIV Criminalization Reform (http://eqca.org). Please contact [email protected] or 323-848-9801 for additional information.

GEORGIA
In conjunction with National HIV Testing Day on June 27, the Georgia Coalition to End HIV Criminalization sent an open letter introducing itself to AIDS Service Organizations (ASOs) throughout the state and encouraged them to contact coalition members for HIV criminalization trainings.

Members of the coalition convened in June and July, and have been in discussion with the Williams Institute on HIV criminalization research in Georgia.
 
Coalition members continue to monitor developments around House Resolution 240, which formed a committee tasked with examining barriers to health care for Georgians with chronic health conditions, including HIV. The resolution requires the committee to “[a]ssess the HIV laws' alignment with current evidence regarding HIV transmission risk and consider whether these laws are the best vehicle to achieve their intended purpose.”
 
Meetings are held the first Thursday of the month from 4:00-6:00pm (ET) 
 
If you are interested in joining the Georgia Coalition to End HIV Criminalization, please contact Emily Brown ([email protected]) and visit the coalition’s coalition’s website for additional information.

 

LOUISIANA
In June, the coalition finalized its official name: Louisiana Coalition on Criminalization and Health (LCCH). The group is forming working groups focused on Education, Partnerships, Administrative, Legal/Policy, etc., to engage in more structured efforts to advance the LCCH’s goals of modernization in the state. The group is also working on mounting a rapid response to a recent prosecution in New Orleans. The case involves a man who allegedly spit at police officers, which is currently punishable by up to 11 years of incarceration under Louisiana state law.
 
Meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month at 11:00am (CT).
 
If you are interested in information about HIV criminalization or actively participating in LCCH, please contact Chip Eakins at [email protected].

MISSOURI
Missouri HIV Justice Coalition held community roundtables on July 18 and 20 in St. Louis and Kansas City to identify the perspectives and priorities of those who are most severely affected by Missouri’s HIV criminal law.
 
On August 5 and 6, the coalition is hosting a train-the-trainer event in cooperation with the Sero Project in Springfield.
 
Meetings are held on the fourth Friday of the month at 1:00pm (CT) via conference call.
 
If you are interested in becoming an advocate with the Missouri HIV Justice Coalition, please contact Ashley Quinn at [email protected], and visit the coalition’s website for additional information. 

 

OHIO
On July 8, Ohio advocates held a community forum in Columbus, with support from the Positive Justice Project. The event included more than 50 attendees from across the state, many of whom were new to the issue of the HIV criminalization. The first half of the day provided an overview of Ohio’s HIV criminal law, as well as recent efforts relating to Batista and Ohio’s Criminal Justice Recodification Committee. The second half of the day was a participatory workshop where attendees worked together in breakout groups to map a strategy moving forward.
 
In June, the Ohio Criminal Justice Recodification Committee released its final recommendations to the state legislature. The recommendations can be found here. In brief, the proposal would remove HIV non-disclosure from Ohio’s felonious assault law, and create a new offense entitled “Dangerous Sexual Activity,” which would contain the following provisions: 1) intentional transmission of HIV by any means would be punished as a 2nd degree felony 2) non-disclosure of HIV status and sexual activity resulting in transmission would be punished as a 2nd degree felony and; 3) non-disclosure of HIV status and not taking “reasonable precautions” (ART or condom use) prior to sexual activity would be punished as a 1st degree misdemeanor. Refer to page 57 in the link for details. Coalition members wrote a letter to the Recodification Committee opposing a similar proposal in December 2016. That letter can be found here.
 
Meetings are the second Wednesday of the month at 5:00pm (ET). 
 
If you would like information on HIV Criminalization or are interested in becoming an advocate with the Ohio HIV Criminalization Working Group, please contact Arpita Appannagari at [email protected].

TENNESSEE
The PJP Tennessee Working Group convened in June and July and reviewed updates from recent legislative advocacy efforts. This summer advocates are fine-tuning their legislative strategy, working on a rapid response plan and opportunities for prosecutorial and public defender education.
 
Meetings are held on the fourth Thursday of the month at 1:00pm (CT).
 
If you would like information on HIV criminalization or are interested in becoming an advocate with the PJP TN Working Group, please contact Arpita Appannagari at [email protected].

 

TEXAS
Advocates are planning an HIV Criminalization 101 webinar in August to introduce new members to the basics of this advocacy work. The group convened in June and added many new members to their coalition. 
 
Meetings are held on the third Thursday of the month at 6:00pm (CT).
 
If you are interested in information about HIV criminalization or actively participating in the Texas HIV Working Group, please contact Arpita Appannagari at[email protected].