Amended in Senate April 2, 2013

Senate Bill No. 327

Introduced by Senator Yee

February 19, 2013

An act to amend begin delete Section end delete begin insert Sections end insert 1473.5 begin insert and 4801 end insert of the Penal Code, relating to human trafficking.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 327, as amended, Yee. Human trafficking: recall and begin delete resentencing. end delete begin insert resentencing: pardons and parole. end insert

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Existing

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begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Existing end insert law authorizes every person who is unlawfully imprisoned or restrained of his or her liberty to prosecute a writ of habeas corpus to inquire into the cause of that imprisonment or restraint.

Existing law provides that a writ of habeas corpus based on intimate partner battering may be prosecuted if competent and substantial expert testimony relating to intimate partner battering and its effects was not presented to the trier of fact at the trial court proceedings, and is of such substance that, had it been presented, there is a reasonable probability, sufficient to undermine confidence in the judgment of conviction or sentence, the result of the proceedings would have been different, and that the burden of proof in this regard is on the petitioner.

This bill would make those provisions applicable to cases in which competent and substantial expert testimony relating to human trafficking, as defined, and its effects was not presented to the trier of fact at the trial court proceedings and is of such substance that, had the competent and substantial expert testimony been presented, there is a reasonable probability, sufficient to undermine confidence in the judgment of conviction or sentence, that the result of the proceedings would have been different.

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(2) Existing law authorizes the Board of Parole Hearings to report to the Governor, from time to time, the names of any and all persons imprisoned in any state prison who, in its judgment, ought to have a commutation of sentence or be pardoned and set at liberty on account of good conduct, or unusual term of sentence, or any other cause, including evidence of intimate partner battering and its effects. Existing law requires the Board of Parole Hearings, one year prior to an inmate’s minimum eligible parole release date, to meet with the inmate to review his or her suitability for parole. As part of this review, existing law requires the board to give great weight to any information or evidence that, at the time of the crime, the person had experienced intimate partner battering, if that person was convicted of an offense that occurred prior to August 29, 1996.

end insert begin insert

This bill would authorize the Board of Parole Hearings to report to the Governor, from time to time, the names of any and all persons imprisoned in any state prison who, in its judgment, ought to have a commutation of sentence or be pardoned and set at liberty on account of evidence that the prisoner was a victim of human trafficking at the time of the offense. The bill would also require, as part of the review to determine a person’s suitability for parole, the board to give great weight to any information or evidence that the prisoner was a victim of human trafficking at the time of the offense.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 1473.5 of the Penal Code is amended to
read:

1473.5.  

(a) A writ of habeas corpus also may be prosecuted
on the basis that (1) competent and substantial expert testimony
relating to intimate partner battering and its effects, within the
meaning of Section 1107 of the Evidence Code, or (2) competent
and substantial expert testimony relating to human trafficking, as
described in Section 236.1, and its effects was not presented to the
trier of fact at the trial court proceedings and is of such substance
that, had the competent and substantial expert testimony been
presented, there is a reasonable probability, sufficient to undermine
confidence in the judgment of conviction or sentence, that the
result of the proceedings would have been different. Sections 1260
to 1262, inclusive, apply to the prosecution of a writ of habeas
corpus pursuant to this section. As used in this section, “trial court
proceedings” means those court proceedings that occur from the
time the accusatory pleading is filed until and including judgment
and sentence.

(b) This section is limited to (1) violent felonies as specified in
subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 that were committed before August
29, 1996, and that resulted in judgments of conviction or sentence
after a plea or trial as to which expert testimony admissible
pursuant to Section 1107 of the Evidence Code may be probative
on the issue of culpability, or (2) cases in which the defendant is
a victim of human trafficking, as described in Section 236.1.

(c) A showing that expert testimony relating to intimate partner
battering and its effects or human trafficking and its effects was
presented to the trier of fact is not a bar to granting a petition under
this section if that expert testimony was not competent or
substantial. The burden of proof is on the petitioner to establish a
sufficient showing that competent and substantial expert testimony,
of a nature which would be competent using prevailing
understanding of intimate partner battering and its effects, or human
trafficking and its effects, was not presented to the trier of fact,
and had that evidence been presented, there is a reasonable
probability that the result of the proceedings would have been
different.

(d) If a petitioner for habeas corpus under this section has
previously filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus, it is grounds
for denial of the new petition if a court determined on the merits
in the prior petition that the omission of expert testimony at trial
relating to battered women’s syndrome or intimate partner battering
and its effects or human trafficking and its effects was not
prejudicial and did not entitle the petitioner to the writ of habeas
corpus.

(e) For purposes of this section, the changes that become
effective on January 1, 2005, are not intended to expand the uses
or applicability of expert testimony on battering and its effects that
were in effect immediately prior to that date in criminal cases.

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 4801 of the end insert begin insert Penal Code end insert begin insert is amended to read: end insert

4801.  

(a) The Board of Parole Hearings may report to the
Governor, from time to time, the names of any and all persons
imprisoned in any state prison who, in its judgment, ought to have
a commutation of sentence or be pardoned and set at liberty on
account of good conduct, or unusual term of sentence, or any other
cause, including evidence of intimate partner battering and its
effects begin insert , or evidence that the person was a victim of human
trafficking at the time of the offense end insert . For purposes of this section,
“intimate partner battering and its effects” may include evidence
of the nature and effects of physical, emotional, or mental abuse
upon the beliefs, perceptions, or behavior of victims of domestic
violence begin delete where end delete begin insert if end insert it appears the criminal behavior was the result
of that victimization.

(b) (1) The Board of Parole Hearings, in reviewing a prisoner’s
suitability for parole pursuant to Section 3041.5, shall give great
weight to any information or evidence that, at the time of the
commission of the crime, the prisoner had experienced intimate
partner battering, but was convicted of an offense that occurred
prior to August 29, 1996 begin insert , or that the prisoner was a victim of
human trafficking at the time of the offense end insert . The board shall state
on the record the information or evidence that it considered
pursuant to this subdivision, and the reasons for the parole decision.
The board shall annually report to the Legislature and the Governor
on the cases the board considered pursuant to this subdivision
during the previous year, including the board’s decisions and the
specific and detailed findings of its investigations of these cases.

(2) The report for the Legislature to be submitted pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall be submitted pursuant to Section 9795 of the
Government Code.

(3) The fact that a prisoner has presented evidence of intimate
partner battering cannot be used to support a finding that the
prisoner lacks insight into his or her crime and its causes.