SB 260, as amended, Hancock. Sentencing.
Existing law provides that the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation or the Board of Parole Hearings, or both, may, for specified reasons, recommend to the court that a prisoner’s sentence be recalled, and that a court may recall a prisoner’s sentence. When a defendant who was under 18 years of age at the time of the commission of a crime has served at least 15 years of his or her sentence, existing law allows the defendant to submit a petition for recall and resentencing, and authorizes the court, in its discretion, to recall the sentence and to resentence the defendant, provided that the new sentence is not greater than the initial sentence.
This bill would state legislative intent regarding the following provisions, and would, except as specified, require a sentencing court to hold a hearing to review the sentence of
a person who was under 18 years of age at the time of an offense and was prosecuted as an adult after the person has served 10 years in prison. After the review, the bill would allow the judge to suspend or stay all or a portion of the sentence, reduce the sentence to any sentence that could lawfully have been ordered at the time of the original judgment, or both reduce and suspend or stay all or a portion of the sentence. The bill would authorize the court to consider specified evidence, in conjunction with any other evidence the court deems relevant, in making this determination. The bill wouldbegin delete also permit additional review only in the event of a change in circumstances that is proven by a preponderance of the evidence in a petition filed with the sentencing courtend deletebegin insert permit each person granted review whose sentence is not suspended, stayed, or
reduced, to file a petition 3 or more years after any review hearing, and would require the review hearing to be granted if the petition demonstrates a change in the circumstances, as specified, by a preponderance of the evidenceend insert. The bill would not apply to a person sentenced under specified provisions or sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
It is the intent of the Legislature to provide a
2judicial mechanism for reconsidering the sentences of adults who
3have served a significant amount of time in state prison for the
4conviction of crimes they committed as children.
Section 1170.195 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, upon motion
7and after 60 days’ notice to the prosecution, the sentencing court
8shall hold a hearing to review the sentence of a person who was
9under 18 years of age at the time of the offense and was prosecuted
10as an adult, after the person has served 10 years in prison.
11(b) After reviewing the sentence, the judge may suspend or stay
12all or a portion of the sentence, reduce the sentence to any sentence
13that could lawfully have been ordered at the time of the original
14judgment, or both reduce and suspend or stay all or a portion of
15the sentence, provided that the person at the time of the hearing
16meets the eligibility criteria of the
alternative disposition.
17(c) For purposes of this determination, the court may consider,
18in conjunction with any other evidence the court deems relevant,
19the person’s record of serious disciplinary violations, whether the
20person has performed acts that tend to indicate rehabilitation or
P3 1the capacity for rehabilitation, including, but not limited to, availing
2himself or herself of any rehabilitative, educational, or vocational
3programs available at his or her classification level and facility,
4the person’s use of self-study for self-improvement, the person’s
5statement describing his or her remorse and work towards
6rehabilitation, the person’s youth at the time of the crime, including
7his or her immaturity, impulsiveness, failure to appreciate risks
8and consequences, family and home environment, intellectual
9functioning, mental
disorder, or disabilities, the circumstances of
10the offense, including the extent of participation in the offense and
11the way familial and peer pressures may have affected him or her,
12and whether the person might have been charged and convicted
13of a lesser offense if not for the lesser abilities of youth, including,
14but not limited to, an inability to effectively deal with police
15officers or prosecutors, or a limited capacity to fully understand
16the proceedings or to assist his or her attorney.
17(d) The court shall identify on the record the criteria relied on,
18and shall provide a statement of reasons for adopting those criteria.
19The court shall state why the defendant does or does not satisfy
20the criteria.
21(e) Victims, or victim family members if the victim is deceased,
22shall be
notified of the resentencing hearing and shall retain their
23rights to participate in the hearing.
24(f) Each person granted review pursuant to this sectionbegin delete shall begin insert whose
25only be entitled to an additional review in the event ofend delete
26sentence is not suspended, stayed, or reduced, may file a petition
27with the sentencing court three or more years after any review
28hearing. A review hearing on any subsequent petition shall be
29granted if the petition demonstrates, by a preponderance of the
30evidence,end insert a change inbegin insert theend insert
circumstancesbegin delete that is proven by a begin insert
specified in subdivision (c)end insert.
31preponderance of the evidence in a petition filed with the
32sentencing courtend delete
33(g) This section does not apply to a person who was sentenced
34pursuant to Section 190.4 or 190.5, subdivisions (b) to (i),
35inclusive, of Section 667, or Section 1170.12, or to life
36imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
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