BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 1850
                                                                  Page  1

          CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
          AB 1850 (Waldron)
          As Amended  August 11, 2014
          Majority vote
           
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          |ASSEMBLY:  |74-0 |(May 8, 2014)   |SENATE: |35-0 |(August 14,    |
          |           |     |                |        |     |2014)          |
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           Original Committee Reference:    PUB. S.  
           
          SUMMARY  :  Provides that a minor who was not a victim of, but who  
          was physically present at the time of an act of domestic  
          violence, is a witness and is deemed to have suffered harm for  
          the purposes of issuing a protective order in a pending criminal  
          case.

           The Senate amendments double joint this bill with AB 1498  
          (Campos) of the current legislative session and SB 910 (Pavley)  
          of the current legislative session, to avoid chaptering issues.

           EXISTING LAW  :  

          1)Authorizes the trial court in a criminal case to issue  
            protective orders when there is a good cause belief that harm  
            to, or intimidation or dissuasion of a victim or witness has  
            occurred or is reasonably likely to occur.

          2)Provides that a person violating a protective order may be  
            punished for any substantive offense described in provisions  
            of law related to intimidation of witnesses or victims, or for  
            a contempt of the court making the order.
           
           3)Requires a court, in all cases where the defendant is charged  
            with a crime of domestic violence, to consider issuing a  
            protective order on its own motion.  All interested parties  
            shall receive a copy of those orders.  In order to facilitate  
            this, the court's records of all criminal cases involving  
            domestic violence shall be marked to clearly alert the court  
            to this issue.
           
           4)States in those cases in which a complaint, information, or  
            indictment charging a crime of domestic violence has been  
            issued, except as specified, a restraining order or protective  








                                                                  AB 1850
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            order against the defendant issued by the criminal court in  
            that case has precedence in enforcement over a civil court  
            order against the defendant.
           
           5)Allows a court, in any case in which a complaint, information,  
            or indictment charging a crime of domestic violence has been  
            filed, to consider, in determining whether good cause exists  
            to issue a protective order, the underlying nature of the  
            offense charged, and any information about the defendant's  
            prior convictions for domestic violence, other forms of  
            violence or weapons offenses, and any current protective or  
            restraining order issued by a criminal or civil court.
           
           6)States that a "protective order" means an order that includes  
            any of the following restraining orders, whether issued ex  
            parte, after notice and hearing, or in a judgment:

             a)   An order enjoining specific acts of abuse, such as  
               contacting, molesting, and striking, as described.
              
              b)   An order excluding a person from a dwelling, as  
               described.
              
              c)   An order enjoining other specified behavior necessary to  
               effectuate the first two orders, as described.
              
           7)Provides that a court may issue an ex parte order enjoining a  
            party from molesting, attacking, striking, stalking,  
            threatening, sexually assaulting, battering, harassing,  
            telephoning, including, but not limited to, making annoying  
            telephone calls as described, destroying personal property,  
            contacting, either directly or indirectly, by mail or  
            otherwise, coming within a specified distance of, or  
            disturbing the peace of the other party, and, in the  
            discretion of the court, on a showing of good cause, of other  
            named family or household members.
           
           8)Authorizes a court to issue an ex parte order excluding a  
            party from the family dwelling, the dwelling of the other  
            party, the common dwelling of both parties, or the dwelling of  
            the person who has care, custody, and control of a child to be  
            protected from domestic violence for the period of time and on  
            the conditions the court determines, regardless of which party  
            holds legal or equitable title or is the lessee of the  
            dwelling.  The court may issue such an order only on a showing  








                                                                  AB 1850
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            of all of the following:
           
              a)   Facts sufficient for the court to ascertain that the  
               party who will stay in the dwelling has a right under color  
               of law to possession of the premises.
              
              b)   That the party to be excluded has assaulted or threatens  
               to assault the other party or any other person under the  
               care, custody, and control of the other party, or any minor  
               child of the parties or of the other party.
              
              c)   That physical or emotional harm would otherwise result  
               to the other party, to any person under the care, custody,  
               and control of the other party, or to any minor child of  
               the parties or of the other party.
              
          FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to Senate Appropriations Committee,  
          pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.

           COMMENTS  :  According to the author, "AB 1850 makes clear in the  
          law that a child's presence during an act of domestic violence  
          makes the child a witness to the act who has suffered harm,  
          thereby permitting courts to issue protective orders for such  
          children.  This legislation is needed to protect infants and  
          young children who cannot vocalize or otherwise testify about  
          the harm they suffered by being powerless witnesses to acts of  
          domestic violence.  Infants and young children cannot review and  
          sign declarations attesting to the harm they suffered, testify  
          in court, or be interviewed by investigators.  Therefore, there  
          is nothing in current law that would enable their protection.   
          AB 1850 would fill that void."

          Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this  
          bill.


           Analysis Prepared by  :    Stella Choe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 


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