§ 15:545 — Duty of law enforcement

§545. Duty of law enforcement
A.(1) It shall be the duty of the sheriff of every parish, the chief of police of each
municipality, and every chief officer of every other law enforcement agency operating within
this state to record the fingerprints of all persons held in or remanded to their custody when
convicted of any sex offense or any criminal offense against a victim who is a minor for
which the penalty of imprisonment might be imposed and to disseminate and file such
fingerprints in the same manner as those recorded upon every arrest. The sheriff and the
police chief or, if the residence is in a municipality with a population in excess of three
hundred thousand, the police department shall forward the fingerprints and information
obtained pursuant to R.S. 15:542 and 542.1, a copy of the criminal history of the offender,
and the text of the law defining the criminal offense which requires registration to the
Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information within three business days for
inclusion into the State Sex Offender and Child Predator Registry.
(2) Each emergency shelter opened or operating in the state of Louisiana in
anticipation of a state of emergency being declared or a state of emergency having been
declared in the state or any portion of the state shall either access the current sex offender
information posted on the State Police Sex Offender and Child Predator Internet Registry or
request that the Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information provide the shelter with
a copy of the most recent central registry of sex offenders registered under provisions of R.S.
15:542 and 542.1.
(3) It shall be the duty of the sheriff of every parish, the chief of police of each
municipality, and every chief officer of every other law enforcement agency operating within
this state to record the fingerprints of all persons arrested for any offense involving the
operation of a vehicle while intoxicated, including local ordinances pertaining to operating
a motor vehicle while intoxicated. However, there shall be no duty to record fingerprints if
the fingerprint system at the local prison is unavailable.
B. Every time a furlough is authorized, the Department of Public Safety and
Corrections shall notify, forty-eight hours prior to the beginning of such furlough, the bureau
that the named prisoner has been granted a furlough, the place to which furloughed, and the
dates and times during which the prisoner will be on furlough status. In the case of an
emergency furlough the forty-eight hour time period shall not be required but notification
shall be made as promptly as possible and before the prisoner is released on furlough. Upon
receipt of furlough information pursuant to this Subsection, the bureau shall notify the sheriff
of the parish or the chief of police of the municipality to which the prisoner is being
furloughed, the nearest Louisiana state police troop unit wherein the furloughed prisoner
shall be residing, and such other criminal justice agencies as the bureau may deem necessary.
C. Disposition of the charge for which the arrest was made shall be reported to the
bureau at whatever stage in the proceedings a final disposition occurs by the arresting law
enforcement agency, district attorney, parish attorney, city attorney, or court having
jurisdiction over the offense.
D. Whenever a person serving a sentence for a term of incarceration in a state
correctional facility for convicted felons, pursuant to court commitment, is released on an
order of the committee on parole or office of adult services, or is discharged from custody
on expiration of sentence, the Department of Public Safety and Corrections shall promptly
notify the bureau that the named person has been released or discharged, and the conditions
of his release or discharge, and shall additionally notify the bureau of change in residence or
conditions of release or discharge of a person on active parole supervision, and shall notify
the bureau when the person is discharged from active parole supervision. Any person
released or discharged shall register with the sheriff pursuant to R.S. 15:542. In addition,
nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to prevent any local law enforcement agency from
recording the residency and other information concerning any convicted felon or other person
convicted of a criminal offense when such information is obtained from a source other than
from registration pursuant to R.S. 15:542, which source may include any law enforcement
officer or other agency or subdivision of the state.

Legislative History

Acts 1992, No. 388, §1, eff. June 18, 1992; Acts 1999, No. 816, §1; Acts 2005, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 11, §1, eff. Jan. 21, 2006; Acts 2006, No. 285, §1; Acts 2007, No. 460, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 2008; Acts 2011, 1 st Ex. Sess., No. 18, §1; Acts 2012, No. 714, §8; Acts 2022, No. 334, §1.