BILL NUMBER: AB 768 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 19, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Achadjian
FEBRUARY 21, 2013
An act to amend Section 6600 6608.5
of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to sexually violent
predators.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 768, as amended, Achadjian. Sexually violent predators:
civil commitment. conditional release.
Existing law provides for the civil commitment of criminal
offenders who have been determined to be sexually violent predators
for treatment in a secure state hospital facility, as specified.
Existing law authorizes the conditional release of a sexually
violent predator under specified circumstances. Proposition 83
of the November 7, 2006, statewide general election, made various
changes to the sexually violent predator civil commitment process.
Proposition 83 permits the Legislature to amend its provisions,
either by a 2/3 vote of the membership of each house, or by majority
vote of the membership of each house if the amendments expand the
scope of the application of the provisions of the proposition or
increase the punishments or penalties provided in the proposition.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to
these provisions prohibit a sexually violent predator
who has been granted conditional release from being released as a
transient in any county .
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 6608.5 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code is amended
to read:
6608.5. (a) A person who is conditionally released pursuant to
this article shall be placed in the county of the domicile of the
person prior to the person's incarceration, unless the court finds
that extraordinary circumstances require placement outside the county
of domicile. Under no circumstances shall a person who is
granted conditional release be released as a transient in any county.
(b) (1) For the purposes of this section, "county of domicile"
means the county where the person has his or her true, fixed, and
permanent home and principal residence and to which he or she has
manifested the intention of returning whenever he or she is absent.
For the purposes of determining the county of domicile, the court may
consider information found on a California driver's license,
California identification card, recent rent or utility receipt,
printed personalized checks or other recent banking documents showing
that person's name and address, or information contained in an
arrest record, probation officer's report, trial transcript, or other
court document. If no information can be identified or verified, the
county of domicile of the individual shall be considered to be the
county in which the person was arrested for the crime for which he or
she was last incarcerated in the state prison or from which he or
she was last returned from parole.
(2) In a case where the person committed a crime while being held
for treatment in a state hospital, or while being confined in a state
prison or local jail facility, the county wherein that facility was
located shall not be considered the county of domicile unless the
person resided in that county prior to being housed in the hospital,
prison, or jail.
(c) For the purposes of this section, "extraordinary circumstances"
means circumstances that would inordinately limit the department's
ability to effect conditional release of the person in the county of
domicile in accordance with Section 6608 or any other provision of
this article, and the procedures described in Sections 1605 to 1610,
inclusive, of the Penal Code.
(d) The county of domicile shall designate a county agency or
program that will provide assistance and consultation in the process
of locating and securing housing within the county for persons
committed as sexually violent predators who are about to be
conditionally released under Section 6608. Upon notification by the
department of a person's potential or expected conditional release
under Section 6608, the county of domicile shall notify the
department of the name of the designated agency or program, at least
60 days before the date of the potential or expected release.
(e) In recommending a specific placement for community outpatient
treatment, the department or its designee shall consider all of the
following:
(1) The concerns and proximity of the victim or the victim's next
of kin.
(2) The age and profile of the victim or victims in the sexually
violent offenses committed by the person subject to placement. For
purposes of this subdivision, the "profile" of a victim includes, but
is not limited to, gender, physical appearance, economic background,
profession, and other social or personal characteristics.
(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person released
under this section shall not be placed within one-quarter mile of any
public or private school providing instruction in kindergarten or
any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, if either of the following
conditions exist:
(1) The person has previously been convicted of a violation of
Section 288.5 of, or subdivision (a) or (b), or paragraph (1) of
subdivision (c) of Section 288 of, the Penal Code.
(2) The court finds that the person has a history of improper
sexual conduct with children.
SECTION 1. Section 6600 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code is amended to read:
6600. As used in this article, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(a) (1) "Sexually violent predator" means a person who has been
convicted of a sexually violent offense against one or more victims
and who has a diagnosed mental disorder that makes the person a
danger to the health and safety of others in that it is likely that
he or she will engage in sexually violent criminal behavior.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision any of the following shall be
considered a conviction for a sexually violent offense:
(A) A prior or current conviction that resulted in a determinate
prison sentence for an offense described in subdivision (b).
(B) A conviction for an offense described in subdivision (b) that
was committed prior to July 1, 1977, and that resulted in an
indeterminate prison sentence.
(C) A prior conviction in another jurisdiction for an offense that
includes all of the elements of an offense described in subdivision
(b).
(D) A conviction for an offense under a predecessor statute that
includes all of the elements of an offense described in subdivision
(b).
(E) A prior conviction for which the inmate received a grant of
probation for an offense described in subdivision (b).
(F) A prior finding of not guilty by reason of insanity for an
offense described in subdivision (b).
(G) A conviction resulting in a finding that the person was a
mentally disordered sex offender.
(H) A prior conviction for an offense described in subdivision (b)
for which the person was committed to the Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities, pursuant to
Section 1731.5.
(I) A prior conviction for an offense described in subdivision (b)
that resulted in an indeterminate prison sentence.
(3) Conviction of one or more of the crimes enumerated in this
section shall constitute evidence that may support a court or jury
determination that a person is a sexually violent predator, but shall
not be the sole basis for the determination. The existence of prior
convictions may be shown with documentary evidence. The details
underlying the commission of an offense that led to a prior
conviction, including a predatory relationship with the victim, may
be shown by documentary evidence, including, but not limited to,
preliminary hearing transcripts, trial transcripts, probation and
sentencing reports, and evaluations by the State Department of State
Hospitals. Jurors shall be admonished that they may not find a person
to be a sexually violent predator based on prior offenses absent
relevant evidence of a currently diagnosed mental disorder that makes
the person a danger to the health and safety of others in that it is
likely that he or she will engage in sexually violent criminal
behavior.
(4) The provisions of this section shall apply to a person against
whom proceedings were initiated for commitment as a sexually violent
predator on or after January 1, 1996.
(b) "Sexually violent offense" means the following acts when
committed by force, violence, duress, menace, fear of immediate and
unlawful bodily injury on the victim or another person, or
threatening to retaliate in the future against the victim or any
other person, and that are committed on, before, or after the
effective date of this article and result in a conviction or a
finding of not guilty by reason of insanity, as defined in
subdivision (a): a felony violation of Section 261, 262, 264.1, 269,
286, 288, 288a, 288.5, or 289 of the Penal Code, or a felony
violation of Section 207, 209, or 220 of the Penal Code, committed
with the intent to commit a violation of Section 261, 262, 264.1,
286, 288, 288a, or 289 of the Penal Code.
(c) "Diagnosed mental disorder" includes a congenital or acquired
condition affecting the emotional or volitional capacity that
predisposes the person to the commission of criminal sexual acts in a
degree constituting the person a menace to the health and safety of
others.
(d) "Danger to the health and safety of others" does not require
proof of a recent overt act while the offender is in custody.
(e) "Predatory" means an act is directed toward a stranger, a
person of casual acquaintance with whom no substantial relationship
exists, or an individual with whom a relationship has been
established or promoted for the primary purpose of victimization.
(f) "Recent overt act" means a criminal act that manifests a
likelihood that the actor may engage in sexually violent predatory
criminal behavior.
(g) Notwithstanding any other law and for purposes of this
section, a prior juvenile adjudication of a sexually violent offense
may constitute a prior conviction for which the person received a
determinate term if all of the following apply:
(1) The juvenile was 16 years of age or older at the time he or
she committed the prior offense.
(2) The prior offense is a sexually violent offense as specified
in subdivision (b).
(3) The juvenile was adjudged a ward of the juvenile court within
the meaning of Section 602 because of the person's commission of the
offense giving rise to the juvenile court adjudication.
(4) The juvenile was committed to the Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities, for the sexually
violent offense.
(h) A minor adjudged a ward of the court for commission of an
offense that is defined as a sexually violent offense shall be
entitled to specific treatment as a sexual offender. The failure of a
minor to receive that treatment shall not constitute a defense or
bar to a determination that a person is a sexually violent predator
within the meaning of this article.