BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2121
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2121 (Gray)
As Amended July 1, 2014
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |76-0 |(May 19, 2014) |SENATE: |33-0 |(August 20, |
| | | | | |2014) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY : Requires a sex-registrant parolee to report to his or
her parole agent within one working day of release to have a
Global Positioning System (GPS) device affixed to his or her
person.
The Senate amendments provide that parole revocation and
incarceration for failure to report to the parole officer are
not mandatory if the parole authority finds that in the
interests of justice those penalties are not appropriate in the
particular case.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires all persons paroled before October 1, 2011, to remain
under the supervision of the California Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) until jurisdiction is
terminated by operation of law or until parole is discharged.
2)Requires the following persons released from prison on or
after October 1, 2011, be subject to parole under the
supervision of CDCR:
a) A person who committed a serious felony listed in Penal
Code Section 1192.7(c);
b) A person who committed a violent felony listed in Penal
Code Section 667.5(c);
c) A person serving a Three-Strikes sentence;
d) A high risk sex offender;
e) A mentally disordered offender;
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f) A person required to register as a sex offender and
subject to a parole term exceeding three years at the time
of the commission of the offense for which he or she is
being released; and,
g) A person subject to lifetime parole at the time of the
commission of the offense for which he or she is being
released.
3)Requires all other offenders released from prison to be placed
on post-release community supervision (PRCS) under the
supervision of a county agency, such as a probation
department.
4)Authorizes CDCR to utilize continuous electronic monitoring,
including GPS, to electronically monitor the whereabouts of
persons on parole.
5)Provides that every inmate who has been convicted for any
felony violation of a registrable sex offense or any attempt
to commit any of the above-mentioned offenses and who is
committed to prison and released on parole shall be monitored
by GPS for the term of his or her parole, or for the duration
or any remaining part thereof, whichever period of time is
less.
6)Provides, as enacted by Proposition 83 of 2006, that every
inmate who has been convicted for any felony violation of a
registrable sex offense or any attempt to commit (one of the
enumerated sex offenses) and who is committed to prison and
released on parole shall be monitored by GPS for life.
7)Prohibits a person who is required to register as a sex
offender and who is subject to parole supervision from
removing or disabling a GPS device affixed as a condition of
parole.
8)Authorizes the court, upon revocation of parole, to do any of
the following:
a) Reinstate parole with modification of conditions, if
appropriate, including a period of incarceration;
b) Revoke parole and order the parolee to serve time in the
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county jail; or,
c) Refer the parolee to a re-entry program or other
evidence-based program.
9)Limits confinement in the county jail for up to 180 days of
incarceration per revocation.
10)Requires a mandatory 180-day term of incarceration in the
county jail for a sex offender on parole who removes or
disables a GPS device
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Clarified that a parolee who is required to register as a sex
offender must report to his or her parole agent to have a GPS
device affixed within one working day of release from custody,
or as instructed by a parole agent.
2)Stated that a parolee who is required to register as a sex
offender is prohibited not only from removing or disabling the
GPS device, but also from rendering it inoperable or knowingly
circumventing its operation.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "AB 2121 addresses a
dangerous oversight in the current statutes relating to paroled
sex offenders. Last year, SB 57 [(Lieu), Chapter 776, Statutes
of 2013] was enacted to require that parolees who remove their
GPS monitoring device face a mandatory 180-day incarceration.
However, there is no statute that provides for any recourse
should a parolee fails to report to have the monitoring device
affixed in the first place or if the parolee willfully renders
the device inoperable without physically removing the device.
"AB 2121 provides a uniform deterrent across the board
consistent with SB 57. Any of these actions, which impede the
ability of law enforcement to adequately monitor paroled sex
offenders, shall result in the same mandatory 180-day
incarceration. These actions share the same result, which is to
render the GPS monitor useless as a tool of law enforcement.
The bill recognizes this fact and applies an equal deterrent
accordingly, to ensure that law enforcement has the tools they
need to adequately protect and maintain public safety."
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Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0004377