BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 1325
          Author:   John A. Pérez (D)
          Amended:  3/21/13 in Assembly
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 6/11/13
          AYES:  Hancock, Anderson, Block, De León, Knight, Liu, Steinberg
           
          ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  75-0, 5/9/13 (Consent) - See last page for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Vandalism:  punishment

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill extends from 240 days to one year the  
          period of time for a person convicted of vandalism or affixing  
          graffiti to complete his/her court-imposed community service.

           ANALYSIS  :    

          Existing law:

           1. Provides that every person who maliciously defaces real or  
             personal property with graffiti or other inscribed material  
             is guilty of vandalism, which is punishable as an alternate  
             felony/misdemeanor.   

           2. States that if the amount of damage is $400 or more,  
             vandalism is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not  
             exceeding one year, or by 16 months, two, or three years in a  
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             county jail or by a fine of not more than $10,000, if the  
             amount of damage is $10,000 or more, by a fine of not more  
             than $50,000 or by both that fine and imprisonment.  

           3. States that if the amount of damage is less than $400,  
             vandalism is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not  
             exceeding one year; or by a fine of not more than $1,000; or  
             by both that fine and imprisonment.  

           4. Defines "graffiti or other inscribed material" as including  
             any unauthorized inscription, word, figure, mark, or design  
             that is written, marked, etched, scratched, drawn, or painted  
             on real or personal property.   

           5. Provides that the court may order any person convicted of  
             vandalism and ordered to perform community service or  
             graffiti removal to undergo counseling.  

           6. Provides that every person who is convicted of vandalism may  
             be ordered by the court as a condition of probation to  
             perform community service not to exceed 300 hours over a  
             period not to exceed 240 days during a time other than  
             his/her hours of school attendance or employment.   

          This bill provides instead that the community service must be  
          performed within one year.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  No   Local:  
           No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  6/12/13)

          AFSCME, AFL-CIO
          California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
          California Public Defenders Association


           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    The California Attorneys for Criminal  
          Justice state:

            Existing law makes every person that defaces with graffiti or  
            other materials, real or personal property of another, guilty  
            of vandalism.  The crime of vandalism is punishable by fine  
            imprisonment, or both.  The court is authorized to impose  

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            community services hours, as a condition of probation not to  
            exceed 300 hours to be completed in no more than 240 days.   
            This bill attempts to provide more flexibility and a longer  
            time frame for those guilty of vandalism to complete the  
            community service hours.  

            The proposed changes AB 1325 introduces will help those guilty  
            of vandalism complete their court-mandated community service  
            hours.  The 280 days currently allowed is an arbitrary amount  
            of time with no reasoning for its length.  Extending this  
            window to one year would allow those persons to balance  
            school, employment, and other responsibilities with their duty  
            to complete their community service hours.  Moreover, on some  
            occasions, the court may order the defendant to maintain a  
            specified property graffiti-free for one year.  For these  
            reasons, we support AB 1325.


           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  75-0, 5/9/13
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,  
            Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown,  
            Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway,  
            Cooley, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier,  
            Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray,  
            Grove, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Jones,  
            Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor,  
            Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin, Muratsuchi,  
            Nazarian, Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel  
            Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Stone,  
            Ting, Torres, Wagner, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams,  
            Yamada, John A. Pérez
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Donnelly, Holden, Logue, Waldron, Vacancy


          JG:k  6/12/13   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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