BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2634
Author: Bradford (D)
Amended: 4/9/14 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 5-1, 6/10/14
AYES: Jackson, Anderson, Lara, Leno, Monning
NOES: Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Corbett
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 65-2, 4/24/14 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Civil rights
SOURCE : California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
DIGEST : This bill expressly authorizes individuals to seek
appropriate equitable and declaratory relief to eliminate a
pattern or practice of interference, or attempted interference,
with the exercise or enjoyment of rights secured by the laws or
Constitution of the United States or of the State of California.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1.Provides that no governmental authority, or agent of a
governmental authority, or person acting on behalf of a
governmental authority, shall engage in a pattern or practice
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of conduct by law enforcement officers that deprives any
person of rights, privileges, or immunities secured or
protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States or
by the Constitution or laws of California.
2.Permits the Attorney General (AG) to bring a civil action in
the name of the people to obtain appropriate equitable and
declaratory relief to eliminate this pattern or practice of
conduct.
3.Prohibits, under the Bane Civil Rights Act (Bane Act), (AB 63,
Bane, Chapter 1277, Statutes of 1987), violence or the threat
of violence based on grounds such as race, color, religion,
ancestry, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual
orientation, age, disability, or position in a labor dispute.
4.Authorizes the AG, or any district attorney or city attorney,
to bring an action seeking injunctive and equitable relief in
order to protect the peaceable exercise or enjoyment by an
individual or individuals of rights secured by the
Constitution or laws of the United States or this state,
whenever a person interferes by threats, intimidation, or
coercion, or attempts to interfere by threats, intimidation,
or coercion, with those rights. Existing law permits the AG,
district attorney or city attorney seeking injunctive or
equitable relief to protect the peaceable exercise of a
person's constitutional rights to also seek a civil penalty of
$25,000.
5.Permits any individual whose exercise or enjoyment of rights
secured by the Constitution or laws of the United States or
this state has been interfered with, or attempted to be
interfered with, to institute and prosecute in his/her own
behalf a civil action for damages, including, but not limited
to, damages under Section 52 (the Unruh Civil Rights Act,
Civil Code Section 52), injunctive relief, and other
appropriate equitable relief to protect the peaceable exercise
or enjoyment of the right or rights secured.
This bill specifies, with respect to those remedies, that "other
appropriate equitable relief to protect the peaceable exercise
or enjoyment of the right or rights secured" includes
appropriate equitable and declaratory relief to eliminate a
pattern or practice of conduct.
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Background
In 1987, California enacted the Bane Act, to authorize the AG,
district attorney, or city attorney to bring an action for
injunctive and other appropriate equitable relief to protect the
peaceable exercise or enjoyment of the right or rights secured
by the Constitution or laws of the United States or this state,
against any person who interferes, or attempts to interfere with
any individual's exercise or enjoyment of those rights.
Additionally, the Bane Act authorizes individuals to bring a
civil action for damages, including, but not limited to, damages
under other specified civil rights legislation injunctive
relief, and other appropriate equitable relief to protect the
peaceable exercise or enjoyment of the right or rights secured.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local:
No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/11/14)
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice (source)
A New Way of Life
AFSCME, AFL-CIO
All of Us or None/Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
American Civil Liberties Union of California
Center for Young Women's Development
Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice
Consumer Attorneys of California
Families to Amend California's Three Strikes
Fathers and Families of San Joaquin
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Homies Unidos
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
MILPA East Salinas
NAACP
National Coalition of Barrios Unidos
San Joaquin Regional Green Jobs Coalition
Street Level Health Project
The Fair Chance Project
The Mentoring Center
The W. Haywood Burns Institute
Valley Latino Environmental Advancement Project
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The sponsor, California Attorneys for
Criminal Justice, writes:
"Excessive force and civil rights violations by police officers
causes significant damage to communities. Individuals often
suffer physical harm or death; families must try to rebuild
their lives and distrust of police officers permeates
neighborhoods. As a result, community members who are victims
of crime become cautious about reaching out to the police due to
concerns that they may be victimized by the police as well.
Unfortunately, police abuse scandals tend to occur in
lower-income communities and neighborhoods with a high
population of people of color.
"Many community groups organize in response to police abuse
incidents with little success. Departments are averse to
altering their policies even when there are repeated occurrences
of police abuse. Often times pursuing a lawsuit is the only
option.
"However, current California law fails to explicitly provide
[an] array of legal options. Although an individual can sue for
monetary damages, current law does not give a court the ability
to issue an order requiring a police department to change its
policies and practices, even if there is a pattern and practice
of civil rights violations. AB 2634 addresses this deficiency
in the law."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 65-2, 4/24/14
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Fong, Frazier,
Beth Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gorell,
Grove, Roger Hernández, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Levine,
Lowenthal, Maienschein, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Muratsuchi,
Nestande, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva,
Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting,
Wagner, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada, John A.
Pérez
NOES: Allen, Hagman
NO VOTE RECORDED: Eggman, Fox, Gray, Hall, Harkey, Linder,
Logue, Mansoor, Nazarian, Olsen, Patterson, Waldron, Vacancy
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AL:e 6/12/14 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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