New Mexico bill would mandate chemical castration for some sex offenders

State Rep. Stefani Lord has authored a new bill in the New Mexico House that would require certain sex offenders to receive chemical castration as a condition of parole, the New Mexico General Assembly reports.

Filed as HB 312 during the 57th general assembly on Wednesday, Feb. 4, the bill carries the official short title: ‘Chemical Castration for Sex Offenders.’

The summary below is based directly on the bill text and may provide interpretation for clarity.

The bill proposes that courts require certain convicted sex offenders to undergo chemical castration as part of parole, in addition to other supervised parole requirements. The district court would notify offenders about the treatment and possible side effects. Treatment would have to start at least one month before an offender’s release date, and would be administered either by the corrections department or an authorized provider. Offenders would be compelled to provide relevant medical records to the parole board and cover the cost of treatment themselves, with inability to pay not serving as grounds to deny parole. The parole board has the authority to determine when treatment should end, while any refusal to comply would result in immediate return to prison for the sentence remainder.

Lord, who sits on the Land Grant Committee, introduced 18 other bills during the 57th general assembly. She also serves on the Radioactive & Hazardous Materials Committee, is an advisory member of the Courts, Corrections & Justice Committee, Economic & Rural Development & Policy Committee, Indian Affairs Committee, Investments & Pensions Oversight Committee, Military & Veterans’ Affairs Committee, New Mexico Finance Authority Oversight Committee, Water & Natural Resources Committee, is the ranking member of the House Consumer & Public Affairs Committee, and is a member of the House Rural Development, Land Grants and Cultural Affairs Committee.

In New Mexico, the legislative process involves several stages: after being introduced in the House or Senate, a bill is assigned to committee for examination, debated and voted on in both chambers, then, if passed, forwarded to the governor for approval or veto. The legislature’s annual session begins the third Tuesday in January, lasting 60 days in odd-numbered years and 30 days in even-numbered years. Only a small portion of bills go on to become law. Further details about legislation and related measures are available here.