BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 473
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 473 (Block)
As Amended August 7, 2014
2/3 vote
SENATE VOTE :39-0
PUBLIC SAFETY 7-0 APPROPRIATIONS 17-0
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|Ayes:|Ammiano, Melendez, |Ayes:|Gatto, Harkey, Bigelow, |
| |Jones-Sawyer, Mitchell, | |Bocanegra, Bradford, Ian |
| |Quirk, Skinner, Waldron | |Calderon, Campos, |
| | | |Donnelly, Eggman, Gomez, |
| | | |Hall, Holden, Linder, |
| | | |Pan, Quirk, Wagner, Weber |
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SUMMARY : Adds human trafficking to the list of offenses that
may be used to establish a pattern of criminal activity for the
purpose of enhancing the sentence of any person who commits a
crime for the benefit of a criminal street gang.
EXISTING LAW :
1)States any person who actively participates in any criminal
street gang with knowledge that its members engage in or have
engaged in a pattern of criminal gang activity, and who
willfully promotes, furthers, or assists in any felonious
criminal conduct by members of that gang, shall be punished by
imprisonment in a county jail for a period not to exceed one
year, or by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or
two or three years.
2)Defines a "criminal street gang" as any ongoing organization,
association, or group of three or more persons, whether formal
or informal, having as one of its primary activities the
commission of one or more of the criminal acts enumerated in
existing law having a common name or common identifying sign
or symbol, and whose members individually or collectively
engage in or have engaged in a pattern of criminal gang
activity.
3)Defines a "pattern of criminal gang activity" as the
commission of, attempted commission of, conspiracy to commit,
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or solicitation of, sustained juvenile petition for, or
conviction of two or more of the following offenses, provided
at least one of these offenses occurred after the effective
date of this chapter and the last of those offenses occurred
within three years after a prior offense, and the offenses
were committed on separate occasions, or by two or more
persons: assault with a deadly weapon or by means of force
likely to produce great bodily injury; robbery; unlawful
homicide or manslaughter; the sale, possession for sale,
transportation, manufacture, offer for sale, or offer to
manufacture controlled substances; shooting at an inhabited
dwelling or occupied motor vehicle; discharging or permitting
the discharge of a firearm from a motor vehicle; arson; the
intimidation of witnesses and victims; grand theft; grand
theft of any firearm, vehicle, trailer, or vessel; burglary;
rape; looting; money laundering; kidnapping; mayhem;
aggravated mayhem; torture; felony extortion; felony
vandalism; carjacking; the sale, delivery, or transfer of a
firearm; possession of a pistol, revolver, or other firearm
capable of being concealed upon the person; threats to commit
crimes resulting in death or great bodily injury; theft and
unlawful taking or driving of a vehicle; felony theft of an
access card or account information; counterfeiting, designing,
using, attempting to use an access card; felony fraudulent use
of an access card or account information; unlawful use of
personal identifying information to obtain credit, goods,
services, or medical information; wrongfully obtaining
Department of Motor Vehicles documentation; prohibited
possession of a firearm, and; carrying a concealed or loaded
firearm.
4)States except as provided in existing law, any person who is
convicted of a felony committed for the benefit of, at the
direction of, or in association with any criminal street gang,
with the specific intent to promote, further, or assist in any
criminal conduct by gang members, shall, upon conviction of
that felony, in addition and consecutive to the punishment
prescribed for the felony or attempted felony of which he or
she has been convicted, be punished as follows:
a) Except as provided in existing law, the person shall be
punished by an additional term of two, three, or four years
at the court's discretion.
b) If the felony is a serious felony, as specified, the
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person shall be punished by an additional term of five
years.
c) If the felony is a violent felony, as specified, the
person shall be punished by an additional term of 10 years.
5)Provides any person who is convicted of a felony enumerated in
this paragraph committed for the benefit of, at the direction
of, or in association with any criminal street gang, with the
specific intent to promote, further, or assist in any criminal
conduct by gang members, shall, upon conviction of that
felony, be sentenced to an indeterminate term of life
imprisonment with a minimum term of the indeterminate sentence
calculated as the greater of:
a) The term determined by the court pursuant to current
determinate sentencing law for the underlying conviction,
including any enhancements.
b) Imprisonment in the state prison for 15 years if the
felony is a home invasion robbery, carjacking, or other
related offenses, as specified.
c) Imprisonment in the state prison for seven years if the
felony is extortion or threats to victims and witnesses.
6)States any person who solicits or recruits another to actively
participate in a criminal street gang, as defined in existing
law, with the intent that the person solicited or recruited
participate in a pattern of criminal street gang activity, as
specified, or with the intent that the person solicited or
recruited promote, further, or assist in any felonious conduct
by members of the criminal street gang, shall be punished by
imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or
three years.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, unknown annual General Fund (GF) costs, likely in the
range of several hundred thousand dollars, for increased state
prison commitments.
In 2011 and 2012, 2,404 persons received enhanced state prison
terms under the Street Terrorism Prevention and Enforcement Act
(STEP). In this same period, 21 persons were committed to state
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prison for human trafficking. If, for example, five human
trafficking commitments served a two-year STEP Act enhancement,
the annual GF cost would be about $600,000, assuming per capita
costs of $60,000. Offenders sentenced under the STEP act are
ineligible for realignment.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "Pimping, pandering and
human trafficking activities are increasing at an alarming rate.
Recently, several new hybrid gangs have evolved in San Diego
County solely for the purpose and profit of pimping. Documented
criminal street gangs who have historically been at odds with
one another are working side by side due to the large income
potential associated with pimping. A 2011 bulletin from the
California Emergency Management Agency's Safe Threat Assessment
Center entitled California Gang Involvement in Domestic Human
Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation states that they 'are
participating in human trafficking and sexual exploitation, in
part because these crimes are considered lower risk and do not
carry the harsher sentences typically associated with gang
related crimes.'
"Although pimping and pandering currently carry mandatory prison
sentences, there is no provision in the State penal code that
provides enhanced penalties for a criminal street gang
connection which would address the new hybrid gangs. The
definition of a criminal street gang triggers enhanced
penalties, bolsters parole and probation conditions, augments
law enforcement tools, and affects the way a case is handled by
all stakeholders in the system. SB 473 adds pimping, pandering,
and human trafficking to the list of offenses that may be used
to establish a pattern of criminal activity for the purpose of
enhancing the sentence of any person who commits a crime for the
benefit of a criminal street gang."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744
FN: 0004383
SB 473
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