BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2484
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 10, 2012
Counsel: Milena Blake
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
AB 2484 (Davis) - As Amended: April 9, 2012
SUMMARY : Specifies that a criminal complaint for vehicular
manslaughter, as specified, may be filed within one year after
the person initially identified by law enforcement as a suspect
in that offense, or within the existing statute of limitations,
whichever is later.
EXISTING LAW :
1)States that vehicular manslaughter is the unlawful killing of
another human being without malice, in the driving of a
vehicle in the commission of an unlawful act, not amounting to
a felony, and with gross negligence, or in the driving of a
vehicle in the commission of a lawful act which might produce
death, in an unlawful manner, and with gross negligence.
ÝPenal Code Section 192(c)(1).]
2)States that violation of the above section is punishable by
either imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one
year or by imprisonment in the state prison for two, four or
six years. ÝPenal Code Section 193(c)(1).]
3)States that vehicular manslaughter is the unlawful killing of
another human being without malice, in the driving of a
vehicle in the commission of an unlawful act, not amounting to
a felony, without gross negligence, or in the driving of a
vehicle in the commission of a lawful act which might produce
death, in an unlawful manner, but without gross negligence.
ÝPenal Code Section 192(c)(2).]
4)States that violation of the above section is punishable by
imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one year.
ÝPenal Code Section 193(c)(2).]
5)States that prosecution for an offense punishable by
imprisonment in state prison or pursuant to subdivision (h) of
AB 2484
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section 1170 shall be commenced within three years of the
offense, unless otherwise specified. (Penal Code Section 801.)
6)States that prosecution for an offense not punishable by
death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment in the state prison
shall be commenced within one year of the offense, unless
otherwise specified. ÝPenal Code Section 802(a).]
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement : According to the author, "As it now exist,
the statute of limitations for the crime of vehicular
manslaughter, or more commonly known as "hit and run,"
provides an incentive for suspects to flee the scene of
serious traffic accidents in order to avoid identification and
possible prosecution. Presently, if a suspect can remain
unidentified three years after an accident resulting in a
vehicular homicide or one year after an accident not resulting
in death, the statute of limitations encourages the suspect to
flee the scene and discourages rendering aid. The statute of
limitations for vehicular manslaughter should be amended so
that it stops running during the period of time when a suspect
who has fled a vehicular homicide accident scene remains
unidentified and begins once the suspect is identified."
2)Statute of Limitations : The statute of limitations requires
commencement of a prosecution within a certain period of time
after the commission of a crime. A prosecution is initiated
by filing an indictment or information, filing a complaint,
certifying a case to superior court, or issuing an arrest or
bench warrant. (Penal Code Section 804.) If prosecution is
not commenced within the applicable period of limitation, it
is a complete defense to the charge. The statute of
limitations is jurisdictional and may be raised as a defense
at any time before or after judgment. ÝPeople v. Morris,
(1988) 46 Cal.3d 1, 13.] The defense may only be waived under
limited circumstances. ÝCowan v. Superior Court, (1996) 14
Cal.4th 367.]
Criminal statutes of limitations are laws that limit the time
during which a prosecution can be commenced. These statutes
have been in operation for over 350 years and are deeply
rooted in the American legal system. There are several
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rationales underlying statutes of limitations. First, they
ensure that prosecutions are based upon reasonably fresh
evidence - the idea being that over time memories fade,
witnesses die or leave the area, and physical evidence becomes
more difficult to obtain, identify or preserve. In short, the
possibility of erroneous conviction is minimized when
prosecution is prompt. Second, statutes of limitations
encourage law enforcement officials to investigate suspected
criminal activity in a timely fashion. In addition, it is
thought that the statute of limitations may reduce the
possibility of blackmail based on threats to disclose
information to prosecutors or law enforcement officials.
Another rationale is that as time goes by, the likelihood
increases that an offender has reformed, making punishment
less necessary. In addition, society's retributive impulse
may lessen over time, making punishment less desirable.
Finally, there is the thought that statutes of limitations
provide an overall sense of security and stability to human
affairs. ÝLauren Kerns, "Incorporating Tolling Provisions
into Sex Crimes Statute of Limitations", 13 Temple Policy and
Civil Rights Law Review, 325, 327; internal citation omitted.]
This bill would allow the statute of limitations to be tolled,
or paused, in circumstances where a suspected vehicular
manslaughter has occurred, and the individual accused of the
crime is unknown to law enforcement because he or she has fled
the scene of the incident.
3)Related Legislation :
a) AB 1682 (Portantino) would eliminate the statute of
limitation for rape and spousal rape. AB 1682 is pending
hearing in this committee.
b) AB 1950 (Davis) would extend the statute of limitations
for misdemeanor mortgage fraud to four years from the date
of discovery. AB 1950 is pending hearing in this
committee.
c) AB 708 (Knight), Statutes of 2011, Chapter 211, extended
the statute of limitation to one year of the date a hidden
recording is discovered relating to the secret videotaping
of another person.
d) SB 387 (LaMalfa) would have extended the statute of
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limitation for fleeing an accident where a death or injury
occurred from three to six years. SB 387 failed passage in
the Senate Public Safety Committee.
4)Previous Legislation : SB 476 (Hollingsworth), of the 2007-08
Legislative Session, would have extended the statute of
limitation for felony vehicular manslaughter from three years
to 10 years, and extended the statute of limitations for
misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter from one year to three
years. SB 476 failed passage in the Senate Public Safety
Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office (Sponsor)
California District Attorneys Association
California State Sheriffs Association
Casie Hyde Foundation
Peace Officers Research Association of California
San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department
Two private individuals
Opposition
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
Analysis Prepared by : Milena Blake / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744