BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 505
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Date of Hearing: June 24, 2014
Counsel: Shaun Naidu
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
SB 505 (Jackson) - As Amended: June 10, 2014
SUMMARY : Requires, except in exigent circumstances, a peace
officer to search the Department of Justice (DOJ) Automated
Firearms System (AFS), as specified, to determine if a person is
the registered owner of a firearm before checking on the welfare
or well-being of that person and if the check is motivated by a
concern that the person may be a danger to others or him- or
herself.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and
Training (POST) to establish, by July 1, 2006, and keep
updated a continuing education classroom training course
relating to law enforcement interaction with mentally disabled
persons. Requires the training course to be developed in
consultation with appropriate community, local, and state
organizations and agencies that have expertise in the area of
mental illness and developmental disability, and with
appropriate consumer and family advocate groups. Requires
POST, in developing the course, to examine existing courses
certified by the commission that relate to mentally disabled
persons. Requires POST to make the course available to law
enforcement agencies in California. (Pen. Code, § 13515.25,
subd. (a).)
2)Authorizes, upon probable cause, a peace officer or other
specified mental health treatment individuals to take, or
cause to be taken, a person into custody for a period of up to
72 hours for assessment, evaluation, and crisis intervention,
or placement for evaluation and treatment in a facility
designated and approved, as specified, when the person, as a
result of a mental health disorder, is a danger to himself,
herself, or others, or is gravely disabled. (Welf. & Inst.
Code, § 5150.)
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3)Requires that whenever a person, who has been detained or
apprehended for examination of his or her mental condition or
who is a person that is a danger to himself, herself, or
others as a result of a mental illness or disorder, is found
to own, have in his or her possession or under his or her
control, any firearm whatsoever, or any other deadly weapon,
the firearm or other deadly weapon be confiscated by any law
enforcement agency or peace officer, who shall retain custody
of the firearm or other deadly weapon. (Welf. & Inst. Code, §
8102, subd. (a).)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement : According to the author, "When checking
on a person who may be a danger to themselves or others, often
referred to as a "welfare check," Senate Bill 505 would
require law enforcement to first conduct a search of the
Department of Justice's Automated Firearms System,
California's database of gun purchases, to find out whether
the person in question may have purchased firearms, and how
many. A search of this database can be done from computers in
law enforcement vehicles or by phone.
"The recent tragedy in Isla Vista, in which Elliot Rodger went
on a shooting spree, killing three people with handguns, has
raised questions about law enforcement protocols. Right now
there seems only to be patchwork of inconsistent agency
policies on database checks. This bill would create
consistency and ensure that law enforcement agencies are using
the tools available to them to gather potentially life-saving
information for themselves and others.
"Although law enforcement may not have had the legal authority
to seize Elliott Rodger's three guns had they known about
them, a gun database search could have provided additional
information that might have helped them better assess the
danger that Rodger posed to himself and others. Law
enforcement could potentially have asked Rodger what he
intended to do with the guns, asked to see the guns, or asked
him to voluntarily surrender the guns.
"We will never know for sure if the outcome in Isla Vista
might have been different with a gun database search, but the
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next time California experiences a similar tragedy, we
shouldn't be left wondering. Searches of the gun database can
be done in as little as 90 seconds, and those 90 seconds can
help save lives.
"While this bill mandates that peace officers check the gun
database, it also allows an exception for exigent
circumstances, and it only applies to welfare checks in which
the check is being done because someone has raised a concern
about whether this person is a danger to self or others."
2)Isla Vista Shooting : According to background material
provided by the author's office, "Recently there was a mass
shooting in Isla Vista California. Prior to the shooting
spree, the perpetrator, Elliot Rodger, was subject to a
'welfare check' by sheriff's deputies because his mother had
contacted local mental health officials who later contacted
police with concerns that Mr. Rodger may have been a danger to
self or others. Police never checked the state's gun
database." This bill would require a peace officer to search
AFS to determine if the possibly dangerous subject of a
welfare check is the registered owner of any firearms before
conducting the welfare check. It is worth noting that law
enforcement has the ability to conduct this type of AFS search
for welfare check subjects currently, although it is not
mandatory. It is unclear why the officers who conducted the
check on Mr. Rodger did not search AFS or how common a
practice that is among the law enforcement community. On the
other hand, it is also unknown if the information that Mr.
Rodger was the registered owner of firearms would have changed
how the deputies handled the situation as he apparently did
not exhibit behavior that warranted further investigation or
action by law enforcement during the welfare check.
3)Seizure of Firearm from Mentally-Ill Persons : A person who is
gravely disabled or a danger to others because of a mental
disorder may be taken into custody and placed in a mental
health facility for up to 72 hours for treatment and
evaluation. (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 5150.) When detained, if
such a person "is found to own, have in his or her possession
or under his or her control, any firearm whatsoever, or any
other deadly weapon," the weapon "shall be confiscated by any
law enforcement agency or peace officer, who shall retain
custody of the firearm or other deadly weapon." (Welf. &
Inst. Code, § 8102, subd. (a).) When the person is released
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from custody, the confiscating law enforcement agency has 30
days to initiate a petition in court for a hearing to
determine whether returning the firearm or other deadly weapon
would likely result in endangering the person or others.
(Welf. & Inst. Code, § 8102, subd. (c).)
In the case of Elliot Rodger, the police did not find probable
cause to believe he was a danger to himself or others and
therefore did not take him into custody for evaluation. If
they had, his firearms could have been confiscated and
judicial proceedings initiated to determine whether they
should be returned to him.
4)Argument in Support : The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun
Violence states, "There are several reasons for conducting
[the] sort of check [required by this bill]. First,
determining the presence of firearms is helpful to the
investigating officer in ascertaining the degree of danger
that the individual may pose. Secondly, having advance
knowledge of the presence or absence of firearms in the home
of the person being checked upon would allow the officer to
assess the potential risk that he or she may face when
carrying out the check. Finally, the AFS has been developed
with great effort and expense and it is therefore in the
public interest to utilize the system to its full potential."
5)Current Legislation : AB 1014 (Skinner) would authorize a
court to issue an ex parte gun violence restraining order, as
specified. AB 1014 is being heard by the Senate Committee on
Public Safety the same day that as this committee is hearing
this bill.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, California Chapter
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence
Opposition
None
SB 505
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Analysis Prepared by : Shaun Naidu / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744