ON APRIL 8, 2024, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 2386, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, make the changes described below to the law regarding search warrants.
This amendment authorizes a law enforcement officer to execute a search warrant for medical records or a test to determine the alcohol or drug content, or both, of a person's blood anywhere in this state.
Present law provides that the judges of the supreme, appellate, chancery, circuit, general sessions and juvenile courts throughout the state, judicial commissioners and county mayors in those officers' respective counties, and the presiding officer of any municipal or city court within the limit of their respective corporations, are magistrates within the meaning of the law regarding criminal procedure. The judges of chancery and circuit courts have statewide jurisdiction to issue search warrants in any district. This amendment adds to the present law by providing that all other magistrates have statewide jurisdiction to issue search warrants in any district, county, or jurisdiction, if at least one element of the alleged crime on which the search warrant is based is committed within the jurisdiction of the magistrate.
This amendment provides that because the evidentiary nature of blood tests authorized and conducted under the law relevant to breath and blood tests to determine alcohol or drug content of a motor vehicle operator's blood and the law relevant to tests for alcohol or drug content of blood are affected by timely collection, and to facilitate and encourage the timely collection of this evidence by hospitals and qualified practitioners pursuant to a search warrant or other court order: (i) a qualified practitioner must withdraw the sample of blood as soon as practicable; provided, that collection of the sample does not jeopardize the operator's life; (ii) all qualified practitioners must be considered to be acting in good faith once presented with a search warrant or any other court order authorizing collection of a sample, and the sample is drawn as soon as practicable; (iii) qualified practitioners must not require the operator to provide any additional consent; and (iv) qualified practitioners may use all reasonable force to obtain the sample of blood from the operator. However, this does not affect the admissibility into evidence in a criminal prosecution of an analysis of the alcohol or drug content of the operator's blood sample based on a delay in the collection of the sample.
Present law provides that so long as probable cause exists for criminal prosecution for driving under the influence, vehicular assault, aggravated vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, or aggravated vehicular homicide, nothing in the present law relevant to breath and blood tests to determine alcohol or drug content of a motor vehicle operator's blood affects the admissibility into evidence in a criminal prosecution of any analysis of the alcohol or drug content of the defendant's blood that was not compelled by law enforcement but was obtained while the defendant was hospitalized or otherwise receiving medical care in the ordinary course of medical treatment.
This amendment adds to the present law by requiring the results of any testing of the blood sample that was obtained while the defendant was hospitalized or otherwise receiving medical care in the ordinary course of medical treatment to be recorded and memorialized in the defendant's medical records and to be provided upon service of a search warrant, judicial subpoena, or other court order. Any residual portion of the blood sample that was obtained while the defendant was hospitalized or otherwise receiving medical care in the ordinary course of medical treatment after the testing provided by the hospital or qualified medical practitioner must be provided as soon as practicable to a law enforcement officer upon service of a search warrant or other court order.
Present law requires the procurement of a sample of a person's blood for the purpose of conducting a test to determine the alcohol content, drug content, or both, of the blood to be considered valid if the sample was collected by a person qualified to do so, or a person acting at the direction of a medical examiner or other physician holding an unlimited license to practice medicine in Tennessee under procedures established by the department of health. This amendment adds to the present law by providing that if the sample of a person's blood was procured pursuant to the law relevant to breath and blood tests to determine alcohol or drug content of a motor vehicle operator's blood, then the limited testing of the blood sample for the alcohol content, drug content, or both must be considered a reasonable search for all evidentiary purposes and must be allowed into evidence without further need of a search warrant or court order.

Statutes affected:
Amended with HA0924 -- 04/08/2024: 40-1-106, 55-10-406(e), 55-10-406, 55-10-406(g), 55-10-408(a), 55-10-408