BILL NUMBER: AB 885 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 22, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 29, 2013
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 14, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Ammiano
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to add Section 1127j to the Penal Code, relating to
criminal procedure.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 885, as amended, Ammiano. Discovery: prosecutorial duty to
disclose information.
Existing law requires the prosecuting attorney to disclose to the
defendant or his or her attorney certain materials and information,
including statements of all defendants and any exculpatory evidence,
as specified.
This bill would require authorize a
court in any criminal trial or proceeding in which the court has
determined that the prosecuting attorney has intentionally or
knowingly failed to disclose certain materials and information,
as specified, to instruct the jury that the failure to disclose has
occurred and that the jury may shall
consider the failure as circumstantial evidence to support
the presence of reasonable doubt. to disclose in
determining whether reasonable doubt of the defendant's guilt exists.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1127j is added to the Penal Code, to read:
1127j. (a) In any criminal trial or proceeding in which the court
determines that the prosecuting attorney has intentionally or
knowingly failed to disclose specified materials and
information required under current law, including Section 1054.1
, except subdivision (a) of that section, and Brady v.
Maryland (1963) 373 U.S. 83, the court shall
may instruct the jury that the intentional or knowing
failure to disclose the materials and information occurred and
that the jury may shall consider the
intentional or knowing failure to disclose as
circumstantial evidence to support the presence of reasonable doubt.
in determining whether reasonable doubt of
the defendant's guilt exists.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit any other
remedy available under law.