Assembly Bill No. 128

CHAPTER 783

An act to add and repeal Section 830.15 of the Penal Code, relating to peace officers.

[Approved by Governor October 13, 2013. Filed with Secretary of State October 13, 2013.]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 128, Bradford. Peace officers: airport law enforcement.

Existing law establishes categories of peace officers with varying powers and authority to make arrests and carry firearms. Existing law provides that a person who is employed as an airport law enforcement officer is a peace officer whose authority extends to any place in the state for the purpose of enforcing the law in or about the properties owned, operated, and administered by the peace officer’s employing agency or when making an arrest if there is immediate danger to a person or property, or of an escape of the perpetrator of an offense. Existing law authorizes this category of peace officer to carry a firearm.

This bill, if the Los Angeles Police Commission and the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners enter into an agreement to enable the Inspector General of the Los Angeles Police Commission to conduct audits and investigations of the Los Angeles Airport Police Division, on or before April 1, 2014, would place an airport law enforcement officer regularly employed by Los Angeles World Airports, as defined, within a different category of peace officers whose authority extends to any place in the state without the above restrictions as to arrest powers and with the authority to carry specified firearms.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the City of Los Angeles, relating to law enforcement at the Los Angeles International Airport.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 830.15 is added to the Penal Code, immediately following Section 830.14, to read:

830.15.  

(a) Notwithstanding subdivision (d) of Section 830.33, a person regularly employed as an airport law enforcement officer by Los Angeles World Airports is a peace officer for purposes of Section 830.1 if and when the Los Angeles Police Commission and the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners enter into an agreement to enable the Inspector General of the Los Angeles Police Commission to conduct audits and investigations of the Los Angeles Airport Police Division.

(b) For purposes of this section, “Los Angeles World Airports” means the department of the City of Los Angeles that owns and operates the Los Angeles International Airport, the Ontario International Airport, the Palmdale Regional Airport, and the Van Nuys Airport.

(c) If the Los Angeles Police Commission and the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners do not take the necessary actions provided in subdivision (a) and do not make a record of that action publicly available on or before April 1, 2014, this section shall become inoperative on that date and, as of January 1, 2015, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute that is enacted before January 1, 2015, deletes or extends the dates on which this section becomes inoperative and is repealed.

SEC. 2.  

The Legislature finds and declares that a special law is necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because of the unique circumstances facing the City of Los Angeles relating to law enforcement at the Los Angeles International Airport.



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