BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1498
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Date of Hearing: May 6, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Kevin De Leon, Chair
AB 1498 (De Leon) - As Amended: April 23, 2009
Policy Committee: Public
SafetyVote: 5-1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill expands the existing list of misdemeanor offenses that
prohibit a person from possessing a gun for 10 years to include
carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle, carrying a loaded gun,
as specified, possessing an assault weapon, and any misdemeanor
committed for the benefit of a criminal street gang, as
specified.
(Violation of this prohibition is a wobbler, punishable by up to
one year in county jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000, or by 16
months, 2, or 3 years in state prison.)
FISCAL EFFECT
1)Unknown, moderate annual GF costs, potentially in excess of
$200,000, for increased state prison commitments. In 2007 and
2008 combined, 86 persons were committed to state prison under
this subdivision. If the base offenses added by this bill
results in four additional state prison commitments, which
would be almost a 10% increase over each of the past two
years, annual GF costs would be almost $200,000, assuming
mid-term sentences of two years with full sentence credits.
2)Unknown, moderate annual nonreimbursable local incarceration
costs, likely in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale. According to the author, there are weaknesses in
the current prohibited possessor law. Current law specifies
that persons convicted of felony or certain misdemeanor
AB 1498
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offenses are prohibited from possessing a gun for 10 years
from the date of their conviction. Absent from this list of
offenses, however, are two important gun-related misdemeanors:
unlawfully carrying a concealed weapon and possessing an
assault weapon. Reasonable gun safety regulations dictate that
if an individual abuses his right to possess a weapon by doing
so illegally, he should lose that right for a period of time.
Moreover, the author contends persons convicted of misdemeanor
gang crimes should also lose their right to possess a gun, as
a gang enhancement to any misdemeanor is proof of gang
affiliation and activity and is reason to prevent that
individual from possessing a gun.
2)Support . L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa states, "In 2008
there were 1626 gunshot victims and of those 1050 were
gang-related incidents. Prohibiting ownership, possession,
purchase or receipt of firearms would provide safety measures
that would lead to a reduction in crimes involving guns in the
City of Los Angeles. The City of Los Angeles has made using
all means necessary to prevent gun and gang violence one of
its top priorities."
3)Opponents, including the Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of
California (OSCC) and Safari Club International (SCI) contend
the offenses added by this bill - unlawfully possessing an
assault gun, unlawfully carrying a concealed gun, and
committing a misdemeanor for the benefit of a street gang -
"are easily, inadvertently violated by persons of goodwill"
(OSCC) and "would entrap a great many lawful, well intended,
but unwitting people." (SCI)
4)Current law :
a) Makes it a felony, punishable by 16 months, 2, or 3
years in state prison, for any person convicted of a
felony, or who is addicted to the use of any narcotic drug,
to own or possess a gun.
b) Makes it a wobbler, punishable by up to 1 year in county
jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000, or by 16 months, 2, or
3 years in state prison, for any person who has been
convicted of specified misdemeanors, and who, within 10
years of conviction, owns or possesses a gun.
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c) Requires DOJ to establish and maintain the Prohibited
Armed Persons File, an online database for
cross-referencing persons who fall within the class of
persons prohibited from owning or possessing a gun.
5)DOJ's Prohibited Armed Persons File was created in 2001 (SB
950, Brulte) to ensure prohibited persons do not possess guns.
To enforce laws prohibiting certain offenders from possessing
guns, DOJ developed the Armed Prohibited Persons System (APPS)
to track handgun and assault weapon owners who pose a threat
to public safety. APPS maintains information about persons who
have been, or will become, prohibited from possessing a
firearm subsequent to the legal acquisition or registration of
a firearm or an assault weapon. It also provides authorized
law enforcement agencies with inquiry capabilities to
determine the prohibition status of a person of interest.
6)Related legislation , AB 814 (Krekorian), pending on this
committee's Suspense File, establishes relinquishment
procedures for a person in a prohibited class.
Analysis Prepared by : Geoff Long / APPR. / (916) 319-2081