BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2506
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 29, 2014
Counsel: Gabriel Caswell
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
AB 2506 (Salas) - As Introduced: February 21, 2014
SUMMARY : Permits medical technical assistant series employees
designated by the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation or designated by the secretary and employed by
the State Department of State Hospitals as peace officers
authorized to carry a firearm while not on duty.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that a correctional officer employed by the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, or of the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of
Juvenile Justice, having custody of wards or any employee of
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation designated by
the secretary or any correctional counselor series employee of
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation or any
medical technical assistant series employee designated by the
secretary or designated by the secretary and employed by the
State Department of Mental Health or any employee of the Board
of Parole Hearings designated by the secretary or employee of
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of
Juvenile Justice, designated by the secretary or any
superintendent, supervisor, or employee having custodial
responsibilities in an institution operated by a probation
department, or any transportation officer of a probation
department. (Pen. Code, § 830.5 subd. (b).)
2)Specifies the following persons are peace officers whose
authority extends to any place in the state while engaged in
the performance of the duties of their respective employment
and for the purpose of carrying out the primary function of
their employment or as required. Except as specified in this
section, these peace officers may carry firearms only if
authorized and under those terms and conditions specified by
their employing agency: (Pen. Code, § 830.5.)
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a) A parole officer of the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, or the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Parole Operations,
probation officer, deputy probation officer, or a board
coordinating parole agent employed by the Juvenile Parole
Board. Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision,
the authority of these parole or probation officers shall
extend only as follows: (Pen. Code, § 830.5. subd. (a).)
i) To conditions of parole, probation, mandatory
supervision, or postrelease community supervision by any
person in this state on parole, probation, mandatory
supervision, or postrelease community supervision;
ii) To the escape of any inmate or ward from a state or
local institution. To the transportation of persons on
parole, probation, mandatory supervision, or postrelease
community supervision;
iii) To violations of any penal provisions of law which
are discovered while performing the usual or authorized
duties of his or her employment:
(1) To the rendering of mutual aid to any other
law enforcement agency.
(2) For the purposes of this subdivision, "parole
agent" shall have the same meaning as parole officer
of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation or
of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation,
Division of Juvenile Justice.
(3) Any parole officer of the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation, or the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile
Parole Operations, is authorized to carry firearms,
but only as determined by the director on a
case-by-case or unit-by-unit basis and only under
those terms and conditions specified by the director
or chairperson. The Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice, shall
develop a policy for arming peace officers of the
AB 2506
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Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division
of Juvenile Justice, who comprise "high-risk
transportation details" or "high-risk escape details"
no later than June 30, 1995. This policy shall be
implemented no later than December 31, 1995.
(4) The Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice, shall
train and arm those peace officers who comprise
tactical teams at each facility for use during
"high-risk escape details."
3)Provides that the following persons may carry a firearm while
not on duty: a parole officer of the Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation, or the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice, a correctional
officer or correctional counselor employed by the Department
of Corrections and Rehabilitation, or an employee of the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of
Juvenile Justice, having custody of wards or any employee of
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation designated by
the secretary. A parole officer of the Juvenile Parole Board
may carry a firearm while not on duty only when so authorized
by the chairperson of the board and only under the terms and
conditions specified by the chairperson. Nothing in this
section shall be interpreted to require licensure pursuant to
Section 25400. The director or chairperson may deny, suspend,
or revoke for good cause a person's right to carry a firearm
under this subdivision. That person shall, upon request,
receive a hearing, as provided for in the negotiated grievance
procedure between the exclusive employee representative and
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of
Juvenile Justice, or the Juvenile Parole Board, to review the
director's or the chairperson's decision. (Pen. Code, § 830.5
subd. (c).)
4)Specifies that persons permitted to carry firearms pursuant to
this section, either on or off duty, shall meet the training
requirements of Penal Code § 832 and shall qualify with the
firearm at least quarterly. It is the responsibility of the
individual officer or designee to maintain his or her
eligibility to carry concealable firearms off duty. Failure to
maintain quarterly qualifications by an officer or designee
with any concealable firearms carried off duty shall
AB 2506
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constitute good cause to suspend or revoke that person's right
to carry firearms off duty. (Pen. Code, § 830.5 subd. (d).)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement : "Correctional peace officers assigned to
the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) as medical technical
assistants (MTA's) should be afforded the same rights to carry
weapons off-duty as when they performed the same duties, at
the same facilities, while employed by the department of
corrections and Rehabilitation. When the law was amended to
allow DSH to employ MTA's directly (instead of through an
agreement with CDCR), the section allowing on-duty carry was
properly amended (Penal code Section 830.5 (b)), however the
parallel section authorizing off-duty carry was not so
amended. This bill corrects an oversight, again allowing
MTA's, who perform the same duties with the same inmates, to
carry off-duty for their own and their families' protection."
2)Permitting Medical Technical Assistant Series Employees to
Carry Firearms Off-Duty : This bill would permit medical
technical assistants (MTAs) to carry firearms while off-duty.
In 2012, AB 2623 was introduced to mandate that peace officers
working for the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) be
permitted to carry firearms regardless of the approval of the
agency. It is the current policy of the DSH that peace
officers within their facilities and the surrounding areas
should not be armed with firearms because it is a therapeutic
environment. This bill, would permit MTAs to carry firearms
while off-duty.
3)Firearms in State Hospitals: This bill concerns the novel
issue of arming MTAs outside of state hospitals while not on
duty, however there is a legislative history as to arming
state hospital police while on duty. According to prior
analyses regarding arming of security officers at state
hospitals, the secure treatment area of hospital is the place
where high-security forensic patients are held and treated.
The presence of firearms in treatment areas - secure or not -
could create safety and security problems, and could be seen
as inhibiting treatment.
AB 2506
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In a recent arbitration decision upholding the determination
of DMH not to authorize hospital police to carry firearms, the
California Statewide Law Enforcement Association argued that
hospital police should be armed when performing perimeter
security and transporting patients off of hospital grounds.
Perimeter-only security is provided at Coalinga and Patton by
armed CDCR officers.
Authorizing hospital police officers to carry firearms on the
hospital perimeters could create logistical problems. Perhaps
there would need to be strict separation between the duty of
an officer allowed to carry a firearm outside a treatment area
and an officer who was assigned to duty within a hospital
treatment area. An officer who moves from an area where guns
are allowed to an area where guns are prohibited would need to
remove and store the gun. In an emergency where all available
hospital police must respond to a treatment area, officers
carrying firearms would have to either carry a gun into a
treatment area or delay his or her response to secure the
firearm. If firearms need to be secured, the hospitals would
likely need to create special storage areas and policies.
In July 2011, the California Statewide Law Enforcement
Association (CSLEA) filed a grievance because DMH had not
authorized DMH hospital police to carry firearms. CSLEA and
DMH submitted the issue to arbitration.
CSLEA argued in the arbitration proceedings that arming
hospital police was necessary for DMH to provide reasonable
protection for all employees and patients. Hospital police
officers face particularly dangerous situations when
performing duties outside hospital facilities, including
providing perimeter security and acting as transportation
officers, patrol officers, canine handlers and compassionate
leave officers. The nature of these duties establishes that
hospital police should be authorized to carry firearms.
DMH argued that hospital police do not perform duties that
require them to be armed. Hospital police are not general
jurisdiction police officers. Firearms are not appropriate in
the context of a mental hospital. To the contrary, not
carrying firearms enhances the ability of hospital police to
perform their unique mission. In a situation where an armed
officer is necessary, such as transportation of a potentially
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dangerous patient outside of hospital grounds, there are
options that do not put hospital police officers at risk.
The arbitrator ruled that hospital police officers are not
general jurisdiction peace officers. They are employees of
DMH and expected to act in accordance with DMH policies and
directives. Hospital police officers have the training and
experience to perform their duties without placing themselves
in situations where they would need a firearm. The arbitrator
noted that the record was devoid of examples of hospital
police officers being attacked or injured while on an
off-grounds assignment. The record thus did not establish
that officers face hazards and risks beyond those presented by
their regular duties. The arbitrator denied the grievance.
4)Prior Legislation :
a) AB 2623 (Allen), of the 2011-2012 Legislative Session,
required the State Department of State Hospitals (DSH) and
the Department of Developmental Services (DDS), by June 30,
2013, to develop a policy for arming state hospital peace
officers under their jurisdiction while those officers are
performing hospital security functions outside the secure
area of the hospital.
b) AB 1289 (Horton), of the 2005-06 Legislative Session,
would have allowed peace officers at state hospitals under
the jurisdiction of DMH and DDS to carry firearms without
the authorization of the employing agency. AB 1289 was
held on the Assembly Appropriations Committee's Suspense
File.
c) AB 2338 (Samuelian), of the 2003-04 Legislative Session,
would have allowed welfare fraud investigators to carry
firearms without the authorization of their employing
agency. AB 2238 failed passage in this Committee.
d) AB 1567 (Correa), of the 2003-04 Legislative Session,
would have allowed "limited authority" peace officers,
including those employed by DMH, to carry firearms without
authorization of their employing agency. AB 1567 was held
on the Senate Appropriations Committee's Suspense File.
e) AB 1987 (Harman), of the 2001-02 Legislative Session,
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would have allowed officers employed by various public
agencies, including DMH, to carry firearms without the
authorization of their employing agency. AB 1987 failed
passage in this Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Correctional Peace Officers Association
Opposition
None
Analysis Prepared by : Gabriel Caswell / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744