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New Jersey state lawmakers introduced a bill that would
permit authorities to obtain medical records of persons accused of not
disclosing their HIV status to sexual partners. The measure was prompted by the
recent acquittal of a retired police captain who did not tell his female sexual
partners that he was HIV-positive; an appeals court cited current state law
that barred prosecutors from obtaining his medical records.
“Failing to inform a sexual partner of this type of personal
information can result in life-changing and deadly results and is akin to the
most serious of assaults,” said Sen. Kip Bateman (R-16th District). “In order
to allow for the appropriate prosecution of this appalling crime—and to send a
message to others that this selfish and dangerous behavior won’t be
tolerated—we must give the court the ability to consider information critical
to the case like a suspect’s medical history.”
The bill, co-sponsored by Bateman, Assembly Member Jack
Ciattarelli (R-16th District), and Assembly Member Donna Simon (R-16th
District), would allow a court order to release medical records for a person
charged with a third-degree crime of not disclosing his/her HIV-positive status
to sexual partners. Current law prohibits access to medical records unless the
offender is charged with a first-degree crime as well. “The legal system will
never ever be perfectly perfect,” Ciattarelli said. But he added that it was
the policymaker’s job to perfect laws as much as possible “and ensure that
justice is served.”
