Senate Bill 20
Obtaining crime victim mental health treatment records. (FE)
Stopped in committee
It never got a , so it never came up for a vote. To try again, a lawmaker would have to start a new bill.
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Introduced, passed
Feb 8, 2019
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Committee, stopped here
Stopped here. No public hearing was held.
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Senate vote, not reached
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Assembly vote, not reached
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Governor, not reached
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Law, not reached
Latest entry in the official record, Apr 1, 2020: “Failed to pass pursuant to ”
It never got a hearing in the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety. See every bill that never got a hearing this session.
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Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. More in the glossary
What it would have done
Summary by the , the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.
This bill creates a procedure by which a defendant in a criminal case may seek access to the mental health treatment records of a crime victim that are not in the possession of or under the control of a government entity when he or she believes that those records contain information that is crucial to the defendant's defense.
Under the bill, if a defendant wishes to gain access to the mental health treatment records of a crime victim, he or she must file a motion describing the information sought and show that there are mental health treatment records that are reasonably likely to contain the information sought, that the information is necessary to formulate an articulated theory of defense, and that the information is not available from any other source. If the court finds that the defendant has made this showing and that the potential benefit to the defendant is greater than the harm to the crime victim from disclosure, and if the crime victim consents, the court may conduct an in camera review of the mental health treatment records. Upon reviewing the records, if the court determines both that the information in the mental health treatment records is necessary to an articulated theory of defense and that the benefit to the defendant from disclosure is greater than the harm to the crime victim from disclosure, or determines that the evidence is otherwise exculpatory, the court may order disclosure of the records. Following this order, the crime victim may review the records that the court has determined should be disclosed and may consent to disclose the records, may appeal the court's decision, or may decline to disclose the records and be barred from testifying at the trial.
Read the full summary Show less
If the crime victim declines to disclose his or her mental health treatment records for an in camera review, the court must abide by his or her declination and must permit the victim to testify at trial. The defendant, however, may then comment on the declination and question the victim about those records.
All filings and records pertinent to this process and the mental health treatment records of the victim are to be sealed by the court. Additionally, all decisions of the court during this process may be appealed at any time by the state or the crime victim as a matter of right.
This bill also adds enumerated rights to the basic bill of rights for victims describing the right of a victim to privacy in his or her mental health treatment records, in accordance with the new procedure that the bill creates.
Who's behind it
8 senators are its . All 8 are Republicans.
5 more lawmakers .
See all 13 names Hide the names
Authors (8)
- Rob Cowles · Republican, Senate
- Dan Feyen · Republican, Senate
- André Jacque · Republican, Senate
- Howard Marklein · Republican, Senate
- Luther S. Olsen · Republican, Senate
- Jerry Petrowski · Republican, Senate
- Duey Stroebel · Republican, Senate
- Van Wanggaard · Republican, Senate
Signed on in support (5)
- Mike Kuglitsch · Republican, Assembly
- Jeff Mursau · Republican, Assembly
- Todd Novak · Republican, Assembly
- Warren Petryk · Republican, Assembly
- John Spiros · Republican, Assembly
What it would cost
State agencies filed a . Each opens as a PDF from the Legislature.
What happened
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Apr 1, 2020
The session ended, and the bill died with it.
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Apr 10, 2019
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Mar 20, 2019
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Feb 25, 2019
A state agency sent in its estimate of the cost.
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Feb 8, 2019
Sent to the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety.
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Feb 8, 2019
Introduced in the Senate.
See the official record, word for word Hide the official record
- Feb 8, 2019 · Senate
Introduced by Senators Petrowski, Wanggaard, Feyen, Stroebel, Cowles, Olsen, Marklein and Jacque; cosponsored by Representatives Spiros, Petryk, Novak, Kuglitsch and Mursau
- Feb 8, 2019 · Senate
Read first time and referred to Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety
- Feb 25, 2019 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Mar 20, 2019 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Apr 10, 2019 · Senate
Fiscal estimate received
- Apr 1, 2020 · Senate
Failed to pass pursuant to Senate Joint Resolution 1
Terms on this page
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1. More in the glossary
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis. More in the glossary
Author
A lawmaker who formally puts a bill forward. The text itself is drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau.
Official term: Author, coauthor. More in the glossary
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor. More in the glossary
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate. More in the glossary
From the Wisconsin Legislature's official record, checked Sep 15, 2026. See the source
Committee
A small group of lawmakers that looks at a bill first. Most bills never leave committee.
Public hearing
A meeting where anyone can speak to a committee about a bill, or send written comments.
Senate Joint Resolution 1
The session's calendar. Any bill not passed by its last voting day dies.
Official term: Failed to pass pursuant to SJR 1
Legislative Reference Bureau
The Legislature's nonpartisan office that drafts bills and writes the summary at the top of each one.
Official term: LRB analysis
Signed on in support
Lawmakers who back a bill without being one of its authors, often from the other chamber.
Official term: Cosponsor
Cost estimate
A state agency's estimate of what a bill would cost or save.
Official term: Fiscal estimate