Title 12 — Law Enforcement, Emergency Management, and Military Affairs

(a) The records and reports of autopsies, evidence analyses, drug analyses, and any investigations made by the State Crime Laboratory under the authority of this subchapter shall be received as competent evidence as to the matters contained therein in the courts of this state sub…

(a) The State Crime Laboratory shall charge certain fees in an amount to be determined by the State Crime Laboratory Board, but subject to the limitations set forth in this section for certain records, reports, and consultations by laboratory physicians and analysts, and expert w…

(a) (1) The county coroner, prosecuting attorney, and either the county sheriff or the chief of police of the municipality in which the death of a human being occurs shall be promptly notified by any physician, law enforcement officer, undertaker or embalmer, jailer, or coroner o…

(a) The State Crime Laboratory is authorized to transport bodies of persons whose death is subject to the provisions of this subchapter to an appropriate place for autopsy or for any other scientific tests. (b) (1) (A) The bodies of such deceased persons shall be returned to the …

(a) Except as provided under subsection (b) of this section, the certificate of death of a person whose death is investigated under this subchapter shall be made by the State Medical Examiner or by his or her designee or by the county coroner, whoever conducted the investigation.…

(a) (1) When death occurs in such a manner or under such circumstances as described in § 12-12-315, the State Crime Laboratory shall have the power and authority to perform such functions and duties as may be provided by this subchapter.(2) (A) The laboratory shall make examinati…

(a) It shall be unlawful to embalm a dead body when the body is subject to examination by the State Medical Examiner or his or her associates, assistants, or deputies as provided for in this subchapter, unless authorized by the examiner or his or her associates, assistants, or de…

(a) The State Medical Examiner and his or her assistants may remove the pituitary gland during the course of an autopsy and donate the pituitary gland to an appropriate organization. (b) However, the pituitary gland shall not be removed under the authority of this section if the …

(a) Where death occurs under such circumstances as are set forth in § 12-12-315 and where a body has been buried without proper certification of death, it shall be the duty of the chief law enforcement official of the county or municipality in which death occurred or in which the…

(a) (1) The State Crime Laboratory is authorized to provide special compensation to certain employees for each full pay period of eighty (80) hours worked in a job which requires contact at crime scenes, emergency sites, or other sites where exposure to potentially hazardous subs…

(a) There is created the Crime Lab Equipment Fund on the books of the Auditor of State, the Treasurer of State, and the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State. (b) The moneys in the fund shall be used by the State Crime Laboratory only for:(1) The purchase of equipment;(2) Operating e…

(a) A firearm used in the commission of a crime that comes into the custody of a law enforcement agency in this state may be delivered to the State Crime Laboratory within thirty (30) calendar days for forensic testing for firearms meeting the caliber and type determined by the D…

A.C.A. § 12-12-325Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Eligible person” means a person with an eligibility similar to a firefighter or police officer under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Act of 1976 or the Hometown Heroes Survivors Benefits Act of 2003, 42 U.S.C. § 3796 et seq., as appropriate;(…

(a) There is established the State Crime Laboratory Student Loan Forgiveness Program to assist pathologists employed by the State Crime Laboratory with the repayment of the pathologists' student loans. (b) (1) The program described under this section shall be administered by the …

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Anonymous kit” means a sexual assault collection kit that is collected from a possible victim of a sexual assault who has not decided whether to report the sexual assault to a law enforcement agency;(2) (A) “Appropriate emergency medical-legal …

(a) All licensed healthcare providers conducting medical-legal examinations in Arkansas shall adhere to the procedures set forth in this section in the event that a person presents himself or herself or is presented for treatment as a victim of rape, attempted rape, any other typ…

(a) All licensed emergency departments shall provide prompt, appropriate emergency medical-legal examinations for sexual assault victims. (b) (1) (A) All victims shall be exempted from the payment of expenses incurred as a result of receiving a medical-legal examination if the vi…

(a) The Crime Victims Reparations Board may reimburse any licensed healthcare provider that provides the services outlined in this subchapter for the reasonable cost for such services. (b) The board is empowered to prescribe minimum standards and rules necessary to implement this…

Noncompliance with the provisions of this subchapter is grounds for licensure suspension or revocation pursuant to the provisions of § 20-9-215 or any other provisions governing the licensure of healthcare providers.

(a) (1) A licensed healthcare provider that has collected required victim information as part of a medical-legal examination shall enter the required victim information into a sexual assault collection kit tracking system of the State Crime Laboratory before transferring the sexu…

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Unsubmitted anonymous kit” means an anonymous kit that has not been taken into custody by a law enforcement agency and submitted to the State Crime Laboratory; and(2) “Untested sexual assault collection kit” means a sexual assault collection kit t…

Any person violating any provision of this subchapter shall be guilty of a violation and shall be fined in any amount not less than ten dollars ($10.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100).

(a) All physicians, surgeons, hospitals, druggists, or other persons or entities that render first aid treatment to a person shall report as provided in subsection (b) of this section if they treat or receive in the hospital a case of a:(1) Knife or gunshot wound when the knife o…

(a) The report shall be made immediately upon the nature of the injury being ascertained, shall be by telephone if possible and practicable, otherwise by writing, and shall contain the name, age, sex, race, and location of the person so injured, together with names of persons bri…

Notwithstanding the provisions of the Polygraph Examiners Licensing Act, § 17-39-101 et seq., all law enforcement agencies in this state are authorized to use a psychological stress evaluation instrument to test or question individuals for the purpose of determining and verifying…

(1) Prior to administering any psychological evaluation tests, the person to whom the test is administered must be warned prior to any questioning that:(1) He or she has a right to remain silent;(2) Anything he or she says can be used against him or her in a court of law;(3) He o…

No psychological stress evaluation shall be given to any person under eighteen (18) years of age without first having received written authorization from the parent or guardian of the individual.

The results of any such examination as provided in this subchapter shall be inadmissible in all courts in this state.

(a) When either a law enforcement officer or the Attorney General is notified by the parents, guardian, or other person having custody of a child that the child is missing, the law enforcement officer or the Attorney General shall:(1) Ensure that the missing child information is …

(a) When the Division of Vital Records of the Department of Health receives a request for the birth certificate of a child who has been reported missing pursuant to this subchapter, the division shall within five (5) business days after receipt of the inquiry notify the law enfor…

(a) When a school receives a request for the records of a child who has been reported missing, the school shall, within five (5) business days, excluding days when the school is closed, after receipt of the inquiry, notify the law enforcement officer or the Attorney General and f…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Sex Offender Registration Act of 1997”.

The General Assembly finds that sex offenders pose a high risk of reoffending after release from custody, that protecting the public from sex offenders is a primary governmental interest, that the privacy interest of persons adjudicated guilty of sex offenses is less important th…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Adjudication of guilt” or other words of similar import mean a:(A) Plea of guilty;(B) Plea of nolo contendere;(C) Negotiated plea;(D) Finding of guilt by a judge; or(E) Finding of guilt by a jury;(2) (A) “Administration of criminal justice” mea…

(a) (1) (A) A person is guilty of a Class C felony who:(i) Fails to register or verify registration as required under this subchapter;(ii) Fails to report in person a change of address, employment, education, or training as required under this subchapter;(iii) Refuses to cooperat…

(a) The registration or registration verification requirements of this subchapter apply to a person who:(1) Is adjudicated guilty on or after August 1, 1997, of a sex offense, aggravated sex offense, or sexually violent offense;(2) Is serving a sentence of incarceration, probatio…

(a) (1) (A) (i) At the time of adjudication of guilt, the sentencing court shall enter on the sentencing order that the offender is required to register as a sex offender and shall indicate whether the: (a) Offense is an aggravated sex offense; (b) Sex offender has been adjudicat…

(a) (1) Within three (3) days after registering or updating the registration file of a sex offender, the Division of Correction, the Division of Community Correction, the Department of Human Services, the sentencing court, or the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction s…

(a) The Director of the Arkansas Crime Information Center shall prepare the format for registration as required in subsection (b) of this section and shall provide instructions for registration to each organized full-time municipal police department, county sheriff's office, the …

(a) (1) A sex offender required to register under this subchapter shall verify registration in person every six (6) months after the sex offender's initial registration date during the period of time in which the sex offender is required to register.(2) (A) (i) The verification s…

(a) The sentencing court shall assess at the time of sentencing a mandatory fine of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) on any person who is required to register under this subchapter. (b) (1) A person who relocates to this state and was convicted of an offense in another state that…

(a) There is established on the books of the Treasurer of State, the Auditor of State, and the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State a fund to be known as the “Sex Offenders Registration Fund”. (b) (1) This fund shall consist of special revenues collected pursuant to § 12-12-910, the…

(a) In order for a sex offender to be charged with the commission of a violation of this subchapter so that an arrest warrant may be issued, the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction shall notify the prosecutor when the local law enforcement agency having jurisdiction …

(a) (1) Registration records maintained pursuant to this subchapter shall be open to any criminal justice agency in this state, the United States, or any other state.(2) Registration records may also be open to government agencies authorized by law to conduct confidential backgro…

(a) (1) The Division of Correction shall provide notice by written or electronic means to the Arkansas Crime Information Center of the anticipated release from incarceration in a county or state penal institution of a person serving a sentence for a sex offense.(2) The Department…

(a) The Division of Correction, the Division of Community Correction, the Department of Human Services, the Administrative Office of the Courts, and the Arkansas Crime Information Center shall promulgate rules to establish procedures for:(1) Notifying the sex offender of the obli…

The Office of Driver Services of the Department of Finance and Administration shall provide notice of the obligation to register pursuant to this subchapter in connection with each driver's license issued pursuant to § 27-16-801 and each identification card issued pursuant to § 2…

(a) (1) The Sex Offender Assessment Committee shall develop an evaluation protocol for preparing reports to assist courts in making determinations whether or not a person adjudicated guilty of a sex offense should be considered a sexually dangerous person for purposes of this sub…

(a) (1) In order to classify a person as a sexually dangerous person, a prosecutor may allege on the face of an information that the prosecutor is seeking a determination that the defendant is a sexually dangerous person.(2) (A) If the defendant is adjudicated guilty, the court s…