An Act To Amend Certain Provisions Regarding Evidence under the Law Concerning Post-judgment DNA Analysis
Sec. 1. 15 MRSA §2138, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2001, c. 469, §1, is amended to read:
Sec. 2. 15 MRSA §2138, sub-§8, ¶B, as amended by PL 2005, c. 659, §4 and affected by §6, is further amended to read:
Sec. 3. 15 MRSA §2138, sub-§8, ¶C is enacted to read:
Sec. 4. 15 MRSA §2138, sub-§10, as repealed and replaced by PL 2005, c. 659, §5 and affected by §6, is amended to read:
(1) The DNA test results, when considered with all the other evidence in the case, old and new, admitted in the hearing conducted under this section on behalf of the person would make it probable that a different verdict would result upon a new trial;
(2) The proferred DNA test results have been discovered by the person since the trial;
(3) The preferred DNA test results could not have been obtained by the person prior to trial by the exercise of due diligence;
(4) The DNA test results and other evidence admitted at the hearing conducted under this section on behalf of the person are material to the issue as to who is responsible for the crime for which the person was convicted; and
(5) The DNA test results and other evidence admitted at the hearing conducted under this section on behalf of the person are not merely cumulative or impeaching, unless it is clear that such impeachment would have resulted in a different verdict.
In a hearing in a motion for new trial under this subsection, if the results of the DNA analysis is material evidence in the underlying crime, that court shall consider this evidence together with all the other evidence in the case, old and new, admitted in the hearing, likely to influence a conclusion regarding the person's guilt or innocence, when granting or denying the motion.
The court shall state its findings of fact on the record or make written findings of fact supporting its decision to grant or deny the person authorized in section 2137 a new trial under this section. If the court finds that the person authorized in section 2137 has met the evidentiary burden of paragraph A, the court shall grant a new trial.
For purposes of this subsection, "all the other evidence in the case, old and new," means the evidence admitted at trial; evidence admitted in any hearing on a motion for new trial pursuant to Rule 33 of the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure; evidence admitted at any collateral proceeding, state or federal; evidence admitted at the hearing conducted under this section relevant to the DNA testing and analysis conducted on the sample; and evidence relevant to the identity of the source of the DNA sample.
Sec. 5. 15 MRSA §2138, sub-§14, as enacted by PL 2001, c. 469, §1, is amended to read:
summary
This bill requires, in a post-judgment conviction motion for DNA analysis, that:
1. If the State fails to preserve biological evidence or evidence of a DNA analysis gathered on or after January 1, 1988 that is subject to a court order for new trial, then it is considered prima facie evidence favorable to the person bringing the motion;
2. For evidence gathered on or after January 1, 1988, if the results of the DNA analysis show that the person is not the source of the evidence and the DNA analysis is evidence material to the crime, there is a rebuttable presumption that the DNA subject to the analysis is from the perpetrator of the crime and the DNA analysis is admissible at a hearing on the person's motion for new trial; and
3. In a hearing in a motion for new trial, if the results of the DNA analysis is material evidence in the underlying crime, the court shall consider this evidence together with all the other evidence in the case, old and new, admitted in the hearing, likely to influence a conclusion regarding the person's guilt or innocence, when granting or denying the motion.