HB 2013

Present law requires a county medical examiner or regional forensic center to test a decedent for the presence of any drugs, including therapeutic levels of psychotropic drugs, when the decedent is suspected to have committed a mass shooting that resulte d in the deaths of four or more individuals. This bill removes that the mass shooting must have resulted in four or more deaths before testing is required and requires, instead, that such testing be done if a decedent is suspected to have committed a mas s shooting in which four or more individuals sustained an injury or a reasonable person would conclude that person attempted to kill four or more individuals. BLOOD OR URINE TESTING AFTER PROBABLE CAUSE This bill requires a law enforcement officer who has probable cause to believe that a person has committed a mass shooting to cause to be administered a blood or urine test for the purpose of determining the presence of any drugs, including therapeutic l evels of psychotropic drugs. Such test must be administered by a qualified practitioner, which means a physician, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, clinical laboratory technician, technologist, phlebotomist with certain training, or a physician a ssistant. Such testing must also be administered at a hospital. Testing This bill requires a qualified practitioner to procure the blood or urine sample from a person as soon as practicable as long as the person's life is not in jeopardy. A qualified practitioner must be considered to be acting in good faith once presented with a search warrant or any other court order authorizing the procurement of a blood or urine sample. All reasonable force may be used to obtain the blood or urine sample from the person. Further, a qualified practitioner or hospital does not incur civ il or criminal liability as a result of procuring a blood or urine sample pursuant to this bill, except in a case of negligence. Drug Interaction Study and Reporting This bill requires the hospital where the blood or urine sample was procured and tested to send the sample and the results to the University of Tennessee's health science center college of pharmacy. The hospital is prohibited from disclosing any identif ying information, including the person's name or social security number. The University of Tennessee's health science center college of pharmacy must study the drug interactions between the psychotropic drugs and any other drugs that were present in the pe rson's blood or urine and include any data collected in the quarterly reports submitted to the chief clerks of each house of the general assembly. ON MARCH 30, 2026, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 2088, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 makes the following revisions:  R emoves the provision that requires a law enforcement officer , who has probable cause to believe that a person has committed a mass shooting , to have a qualified practitioner at a hospital administer a blood or urine test for the purpose of determining the presence of drugs. This amendment, instead, authorizes such law enforcement officer to ask if the person consents to a blood or urine test for the purpose of determining the presence of drugs and studying the interactions between psychotropic drugs and other drugs that are present in the person's blood or urine.  Requires the law enforcement officer to have a blood or urine test be administered by a qualified practitioner at a hospital i f the person consents . However, i f the person is a minor, then only the parent or legal guardian may consent to the blood or urine test for the minor.  R emoves the provision that a qualified practitioner must be considered to be acting in good faith once presented with a search warrant or other court order authorizing the procurement of a blood or urine sample and such sample is drawn as soon as practicable. This amendment provides, instead, that a qualified practitioner must be considered to be acting in good faith once the person consents to the procurement of the blood or urine sample.  R emoves the provision that a qualified practitioner may use all reasonable force to obtain the blood or urine sample from the person.  Clarifies that t he health science center must study the drug interactions using available drug interaction software.