BILL ANALYSIS AB 1360 Page 1 ASSEMBLY THIRD READING AB 1360 (John A. Perez) As Amended June 2, 2009 Majority vote PUBLIC SAFETY 7-0 APPROPRIATIONS 14-3 -------------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Solorio, Hagman, |Ayes:|De Leon, Ammiano, Charles | | |Furutani, Gilmore, Hill, | |Calderon, Davis, Fuentes, | | |Ma, Skinner | |Hall, Miller, | | | | |John A. Perez, Price, | | | | |Skinner, Solorio, Audra | | | | |Strickland, Torlakson, | | | | |Krekorian | | | | | | |-----+--------------------------+-----+-----------------------------| | | |Nays:|Nielsen, Duvall, Harkey | | | | | | -------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Expands the categories of relationships that constitute felony domestic violence resulting in a traumatic condition to include former fiances/fiancees, as well as current and former dating relationships. EXISTING LAW : 1)Provides any person who willfully inflicts upon a person who is his or her spouse, former spouse, cohabitant, former cohabitant, or the mother or father of his or her child, corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition, is guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years, or in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine of up to $6,000 or by both that fine and imprisonment. 2)States that holding oneself out to be the husband or wife of the person with whom one is cohabiting is not necessary to constitute cohabitation as the term is used in this section. 3)Defines a "traumatic condition" a condition of the body, such as a wound or external or internal injury, whether of a minor or serious nature, caused by a physical force. AB 1360 Page 2 FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, unknown, moderate annual General Fund costs, potentially in excess of $150,000 for increased state prison commitments. The same penalty, however, can be achieved by charging under Penal Code 245 (assault with a deadly weapon or force likely to cause bodily injury), which would significantly mitigate the cost of new commitments. Because this section provides for longer state prison sentences for repeat offenses of this section, this bill could increase annual costs in the out-years. COMMENTS : According to the author, "AB 1360 seeks to eliminate an inconsistency in domestic violence laws by amending Penal Code Section 273.5 to expand the scope of felony domestic violence to include relationships found in other domestic violence laws. "Specifically, this bill adds to the list of persons who can be charged with felony domestic violence a defendant who is a fiance or fiancee, or a person with whom he or she currently has, or previously had, a dating or engagement relationship. "The prevalence of domestic violence has been an increasingly important focus of the Legislature and law enforcement as California has witnessed rates of domestic violence increase. In order to adequately respond to cases of domestic violence, state laws must be consistent with respect to who qualifies for this crime. "The exclusion of these relationships makes the felony domestic violence statute inconsistent with other domestic violence laws with respect to who may qualify for that crime. Under current law, the list of individuals covered by California's misdemeanor domestic violence law [Penal Code Section 243(e)(1)] is significantly broader than the individuals covered by our felony domestic violence law (Penal Code Section 273.5). "Because of this flaw, a defendant who commits a felony battery on his or her fiance or fiancee, or a person with whom the defendant currently has, or has previously had, a dating or engagement relationship are not subject to the same punishments and treatment requirements that other domestic abusers are subject to upon conviction. For example, if probation is AB 1360 Page 3 granted, the conditions of probation may include: (a) That the defendant make payments to a battered women's shelter, up to a maximum of $5,000, pursuant to Section 1203.097, and/or (b) That the defendant reimburse the victim for reasonable costs of counseling and other reasonable expenses that the court finds are the direct result of the defendant's offense; enhanced penalties for multiple convictions within a seven-year period; requirement that an individual participate in a one-year batterers treatment program. "State law also requires that domestic violence crimes track annual deaths when the deceased was a current or former spouse, current or former fiance or fiancee, or current or former dating partner (Penal Code Section 11163.6). This discrepancy in the felony domestic violence statute impacts the reporting of domestic violence cases. By not including the same relationships in the Penal Code Section 273.5 that are used for annual reporting, the state relies on inaccurate domestic violence statistics. "The inclusion of fiances or fiancees, and current or former dating and engagement partners in Penal Code Section 273.5 will make the felony statute consistent with all other domestic violence laws. It will enable all offenders to be charged with the appropriate crimes and sentenced to the appropriate punishments. And it will allow for more accurate statistical reporting of domestic violence occurrences." Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this bill. Analysis Prepared by : Gabriel Caswell / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0001365