BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó







                      SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
                            Senator Loni Hancock, Chair              S
                             2011-2012 Regular Session               B

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          SB 428 (Strickland)                                         
          As Amended April 27, 2011
          Hearing date:  May 3, 2011
          Government Code; Penal Code; 
          Public Contract Code; Vehicle Code
          MK:dl

                              PUBLIC SAFETY OMNIBUS BILL  

                                       HISTORY

          Source:  Various

          Prior Legislation: SB 1062 (Strickland) - Ch. 708, Stats. 2010
                       SB 174 (Strickland) - Ch. 35, Stats. 2009
                       SB 1241 (Margett) - Ch. 699, Stats. 2008
                       SB 425 (Margett) - Ch. 302, Stats. 2007
                       SB 1422 (Margett) - Ch. 901, Stats. 2006
                       SB 1107 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          279, Stats. 2005
                       SB 1796 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          405, Stats. 2004
                       SB 851 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          468, Stats. 2003
                       SB 1852 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          545, Stats. 2002
                       SB 485 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          473, Stats. 2001
                       SB 832 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          853, Stats. 1999
                       SB 1880 (Senate Committee on Public Safety) - Ch. 
          606, Stats. 1998





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          Support: Unknown

          Opposition:None known
           

                                         KEY ISSUE
           
          SHOULD TECHNICAL AND CORRECTIVE CHANGES BE MADE IN VARIOUS CODE 
          SECTIONS RELATING GENERALLY TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE LAWS, AS SPECIFIED?


                                       PURPOSE

          The purpose of this bill is to make technical and corrective 
          changes to various code sections relating generally to criminal 
          justice laws, as specified.
          
           Existing law  requires trial courts to mail certain documents, 
          including transcripts of plea and sentencing proceedings, to 
          authorities of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation 
          (CDCR) within 60 days of pronouncement of judgment in felony 
          cases resulting in commitments to CDCR institutions. (Penal Code 
          § 1203.1)

           This bill  would instead require the court, within 60 days after 
          judgment has been pronounced only in life, life without parole 
          and death cases, to mail a copy of the charging documents, a 
          copy of the waiver and plea forms, the transcript of the 
          proceedings at the time of the defendant's guilty or no contest 
          plea, if the defendant pleaded guilty of no contest, and the 
          transcript of the proceedings at the time of sentencing to CDCR. 
           In all other cases, courts will provide this information upon 
          CDCR request on a case-by-case basis.

           Existing law  directs CalEPA to provide the Commission on Peace 
          Officers Standards and Training (POST) a portion of the Local 
          Environmental Enforcement and Training for the development of 
          environmental crimes training for peace officers. (Penal Code § 
          14314)




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           This bill  would allow POST to decline all or part of the funds.

           Existing law  authorizes a peace officer who retires to purchase 
          his or her department issued handgun. (Public Contract Code § 
          10334)

           This bill  would authorize the spouse of a peace officer, who has 
          died in the line of duty, to purchase their deceased spouse's 
          department issued firearm. 

           Existing law  prohibits a person from driving a motor vehicle to 
          tow a person on a motorcycle, motorized bicycle, bicycle, 
          coaster, roller skates, sled or toy vehicle or for a person on 
          such a vehicle to be towed by a motor vehicle.  (Vehicle Code 
          §§21203; 21712)

           This bill  would also prohibit the towing of a person on or being 
          towed while on a tricycle, four-wheeled cycle, surrey, roller 
          skis, wheeled shoes, skateboard, or scooter.

           This bill  makes a number of technical amendments to various code 
          sections.

                                          
                    RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION
          
          For the last several years, severe overcrowding in California's 
          prisons has been the focus of evolving and expensive litigation. 
           As these cases have progressed, prison conditions have 
          continued to be assailed, and the scrutiny of the federal courts 
          over California's prisons has intensified.  

          On June 30, 2005, in a class action lawsuit filed four years 
          earlier, the United States District Court for the Northern 
          District of California established a Receivership to take 
          control of the delivery of medical services to all California 
          state prisoners confined by the California Department of 
          Corrections and Rehabilitation ("CDCR").  In December of 2006, 




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          plaintiffs in two federal lawsuits against CDCR sought a 
          court-ordered limit on the prison population pursuant to the 
          federal Prison Litigation Reform Act.  On January 12, 2010, a 
          three-judge federal panel issued an order requiring California 
          to reduce its inmate population to 137.5 percent of design 
          capacity -- a reduction at that time of roughly 40,000 inmates 
          -- within two years.  The court stayed implementation of its 
          ruling pending the state's appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.  

          On Monday, June 14, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear 
          the state's appeal of this order and, on Tuesday, November 30, 
          2010, the Court heard oral arguments.  A decision is expected as 
          early as this spring.  

          In response to the unresolved prison capacity crisis, in early 
          2007 the Senate Committee on Public Safety began holding 
          legislative proposals which could further exacerbate prison 
          overcrowding through new or expanded felony prosecutions.     

           This bill  does not appear to aggravate the prison overcrowding 
          crisis described above.


                                      COMMENTS

          1.  Purpose of This Bill
           
          This is the annual omnibus bill.  In past years, the omnibus 
          bill has been introduced by all members of the Committee on 
          Public Safety.  This year, like last year, Senator Strickland is 
          carrying the bill.  This bill is similar to the ones introduced 
          as Committee bills in the past in that it has been introduced 
          with the following understanding:

                 The bill's provisions make only technical or minor 
               changes to the law; and
                 There is no opposition by any member of the Legislature 
               or recognized group to the proposal.
           




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          This procedure has allowed for introduction of fewer minor bills 
          and has saved the Legislature time and expense over the years.

          2.   Changes to When the Court Sends Transcripts  

          Penal Code section 1203.01 currently requires trial courts to 
          mail certain documents, including transcripts of plea and 
          sentencing proceedings, to authorities of the Department of 
          Corrections and Rehabilitation within 60 days of pronouncement 
          of judgment in felony cases resulting in commitments to CDCR 
          institutions. Courts have struggled for decades to comply with 
          these requirements, and it has become even more difficult in 
          these challenging fiscal times. Because the provision has been 
          in effect for more than 30 years, and in this time of continuing 
          resource reductions, the trial courts asked the Administrative 
          Office of the Courts to collaborate with CDCR to revisit the 
          purpose of the transcript, and to update this provision if 
          possible to reduce the administrative and fiscal impact the 
          current statutory requirement has on the courts.

          This change, as requested by Judicial Council,  will amend Penal 
          Code section 1203.01 to narrow requirements for court 
          transmittal of sentencing transcripts to CDCR to require the 
          court, within 60 days after judgment has been pronounced only in 
          life, life without parole, and death cases, to mail a copy of 
          the charging documents, a copy of waiver and plea forms, if any, 
          the transcript of the proceedings at the time of the defendant's 
          guilty or no contest plea, if the defendant pleaded guilty or no 
          contest, and the transcript of the proceedings at the time of 
          sentencing, to CDCR. In all other cases, courts will provide 
          this information upon CDCR request on a case-by-case basis.












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           3.   POST Funds for Environmental Enforcement  

          Penal Code 14314 directs CalEPA to provide the Commission on 
          POST a portion of the Local Environmental Enforcement and 
          Training account for the development of environmental crimes 
          training for peace officers. The proposed amendment would allow 
          the POST Commission to decline all or part of the funds, and 
          those funds will be available for use by any of the entities 
          listed in the title, including CalEPA and CDAA, for the training 
          of peace officers in environmental crimes. The amendment will 
          give POST the flexibility in determining whether there is a need 
          to update or develop new environmental crimes training and 
          whether sufficient funds are available to accommodate this.  It 
          would also give CalEPA and CDAA the ability to provide 
          reimbursement to attendees for environmental crimes seminars and 
          training conferences, something POST cannot do.  

          According to POST, at this time, there is no unmet training 
          need.  POST has delivered 1,600 copies of the Environmental 
          Crimes training video to the field, 2,143 students have 
          completed the self-paced course, and a classroom course is being 
          presented through San Diego Regional Training Center starting in 
          February 2011.  The amount of the grant varies, depending on the 
          fines allocated to the account by prosecutors, and the amount 
          allocated to POST has steadily decreased.  From 2005 to 2007 
          POST received $100,000 annually, $32,000 in 2008, $72,000 in 
          2009, and will receive $17,557 for FY 10/11. CalEPA staff has 
          predicted the amount to remain at this level or lower for the 
          next two to three years. However, the cost of producing a 
          training video is $116,000 and the cost to develop a self-paced 
          course is $250,000.  The change in PC14314 would allow POST to 
          keep its resources focused in areas that are consistent with the 
          priorities and needs of POST-participating agencies.  



          4.   Allow Purchase of Handgun by Spouse of Deceased Officer 

          This bill specifically authorizes the spouse of a deceased 




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          officer to purchase his or her spouse's state issued handgun.

          This provision is needed to authorize the spouse of a state 
          peace officer that has died in the line-of-duty to purchase his 
          or her spouse's departmental issued handgun.  Numerous spouses 
          have asked to purchase the handgun of their deceased state peace 
          officer spouse after they have died in the line-of-duty as a 
          token of remembrance.  Unfortunately, current law does not 
          authorize a state law enforcement agency head to do this.  This 
          provision would simply give state law enforcement agency heads 
          the authority to allow this handgun purchase.  CHP reports this 
          change would not abrogate any existing handgun transfer 
          requirements.
          
          5.   Towing a Person on a Vehicle  

          Vehicle Code Sections 21203 and 21712 prohibit a person from 
          towing, and from being towed by a vehicle on, a person riding a 
          bicycle, a coaster, and various other devices, but does not 
          include skateboards or scooters.  There is a very limited 
          authority as to what constitutes a "coaster," but it appears to 
          refer primarily to a wagon or sled.   The terms in the bill are 
          archaic and do not cover the types of non-motor vehicles used 
          today. 

          An individual riding a skateboard being towed by a vehicle was 
          recently killed in Ventura County when the wheel of the vehicle 
          hit the skateboard and ejected the rider.  Similar deaths have 
          occurred in other areas of the state.  Towing a skateboard or 
          scooter is as dangerous as towing the other devices listed in 
          the section and should be prohibited.

          6.   Technical Amendments  

          This bill makes a number of technical or clarifying amendments 
          to various sections.


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