BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  SB 1031
          Author:   De León (D)
          Amended:  4/3/14
          Vote:     27 - Urgency

           
           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  5-0, 4/28/14
          AYES:  De León, Gaines, Hill, Lara, Steinberg
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Walters, Padilla


           SUBJECT  :    State claims

           SOURCE  :     California Victims Compensation and Government  
          Claims Board


           DIGEST  :    This bill appropriates $776,946.59 from specified  
          funds to the California Victim Compensation and Government  
          Claims Board (Board) for the payment of 332 state claims, and  
          appropriates $305,900 from the General Fund to the Board for the  
          payment of an erroneous conviction claim.

           ANALYSIS  :    The State Board of Control was established in 1945.  
           It was revised and renamed the Victim Compensation and  
          Government Claims Board by AB 2491(Jackson, Chapter 1016,  
          Statutes of 2000).  Government Code 13928 requires the Board to  
          ensure that all claims that have been approved by the Board, and  
          for which no legally available appropriation exists, are  
          submitted for legislative approval at least twice during each  
          calendar year.  In general, the Board will approve claims in  
          November and February.  Those claims are reported to the chairs  
          of the Appropriations Committees who introduce bills  
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          appropriating General Funds and special funds to pay the claims.  
           These bills may appropriate funds in amounts to the penny for  
          tens to hundreds of claims.  Government Code 906 provides for  
          the payment of interest on claims approved by the Board for  
          which an appropriation has been made beginning 30 days after the  
          effective date of the law by which the appropriation is enacted.

          The re-issuance of stale-dated warrants is the most prevalent  
          claim approved by the Board.  For stale-dated warrants, the  
          State Controller must confirm that (1) the check was not cashed  
          and has not been issued, and (2) more than three years have  
          elapsed since the check was issued and the monies have reverted  
          to the General Fund or to the relevant special fund.  For these  
          warrants an appropriation is needed to reissue the payment.   
          This category also may include state treasury bonds that have  
          not been redeemed within ten years of their maturity date (there  
          are no such claims in this bill), but the majority of warrants  
          are payroll or tax refund checks.  

          Existing law (relative to the circumstances of the erroneous  
          conviction claim in this bill) authorizes a person convicted and  
          imprisoned for a felony to submit a claim to the Board for  
          pecuniary injury sustained as a result of his/her erroneous  
          conviction and imprisonment.  The claimant is required to  
          introduce evidence in support of his/her claim at a hearing  
          before the Board, and the Attorney General (AG) may introduce  
          evidence in opposition.  The claimant must prove, by a  
          preponderance of the evidence, that the crime was either not  
          committed at all, or, if committed, was not committed by the  
          claimant; that the claimant did not contribute to the arrest or  
          conviction for the crime; and that the claimant sustained  
          pecuniary injury through the erroneous conviction and  
          imprisonment.  If a claimant meets the burden of proof, the  
          Board shall recommend to the Legislature that an appropriation  
          of $100 per day of incarceration served in a state prison  
          subsequent to the claimant's conviction.

          This bill appropriates $776,946.59 in various state funds,  
          including $699,346.53 from the General Fund, to the Board for  
          the payment of 332 state claims for reissuance of stale-dated  
          warrants, and appropriates $305,900 to the Board for payment of  
          the erroneous conviction claim of Mario Rocha.  

           Background

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          On February 16, 1996, a party took place at a Highland Park  
          residence that was attended by 50 to 70 people.  Following a  
          verbal dispute between Raymond Rivera and Richard Guzman, two  
          Highland Park gang members and several other guests at the  
          party, including Martin Aceves and Anthony Moscato, a gang  
          challenge was issued and a fist fight ensued outside the  
          residence in the backyard.  Gunfire erupted and Mr. Aceves was  
          shot at close range and killed.  Numerous witnesses saw Mr.  
          Guzman shoot Mr. Aceves.  Gunfire also occurred in the driveway  
          as guests were fleeing, and Mr. Moscato was shot while running  
          down the driveway, but survived the incident.  Witnesses  
          testified that Mr. Rivera had placed a gun against the ribs of  
          two guests prior to the fight.  One week after the incident,  
          Mario Rocha, Mr. Rivera, and Mr. Guzman were arrested for the  
          shooting and charged with murder and attempted murder.  It was  
          alleged that Mr. Rocha, along with Mr. Rivera, were shooting at  
          guests in the driveway.

          All three defendants were tried together, and on December 4,  
          1997, a jury found them all guilty of murder and attempted  
          murder, and found that each defendant used a firearm in the  
          commission of the crimes.  Three witnesses identified Mr. Rocha  
          as a shooter in the driveway, while nine other witnesses  
          testified that he was not the shooter in the driveway.  Most of  
          these and other witnesses testified to hearing four to six  
          gunshots and none testified to seeing more than two shooters.   
          Two bullets were recovered from the scene and expert testimony  
          indicated that they came from two different guns.

          Mr. Rocha was sentenced to 29 years-to-life in prison for the  
          murder charge, with a consecutive prison term of one year and  
          four months-to-life for the attempted murder charge.  The  
          conviction and sentence was affirmed by an appellate court on  
          June 29, 1999.  Subsequently, Mr. Rocha filed numerous  
          challenges, including a claim for ineffective assistance of  
          counsel, which was initially denied by the Los Angeles Superior  
          Court.  On December 28, 2005, however, the Court of Appeals  
          reversed the previous decision and granted Mr. Rocha's Writ of  
          Habeus Corpus based on ineffective assistance of counsel.  Mr.  
          Rocha was returned from state prison to jail on April 19, 2006,  
          and released on bail on August 24, 2006 while the Los Angeles  
          District Attorney's Office (DA) determined whether or not to  
          retry him.  On October 28, 2008, the DA dismissed the charges  

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          against Mr. Rocha, citing the unavailability of witnesses as a  
          reason for dropping charges.  Mr. Rocha then filed a claim with  
          the Board for compensation related to the erroneous conviction  
          on April 22, 2009.  


           Findings  .  The hearing officer's proposed decision concludes  
          that Mr. Rocha has met his burden of proving by a preponderance  
          of the evidence that he did not commit the crimes of murder and  
          attempted murder.  The decision was based upon the following:


             Forensic evidence shows that only two guns were fired.  


             No witnesses named three different shooters and there is no  
             evidence whatsoever that there was a third shooter.


             Two documented gang members who brought weapons to the party  
             were convicted of murder and attempted murder and are still  
             in prison. (the proposed decision indicates this point weighs  
             most in determining Mr. Rocha's innocence)

             Nine witnesses state that Mr. Rocha was not the shooter  
             while only one solidly states that he was the shooter,  
             another witness thinks Mr. Rocha looks like the shooter, and  
             a third witness originally told law enforcement he did not  
             see the shooter.  The proposed decision notes the witnesses  
             varying degrees of credibility and confidence regarding  
             claims that Mr. Rocha was or was not the shooter in the  
             driveway.

          The Board approved the claim on a vote of 2-1 on December 12,  
          2013, determining that Mr. Rocha is entitled to $305,900 in  
          compensation for incarceration in state prison for 3,059 days.   
          Although the AG presented evidence opposing Mr. Rocha's claim at  
          the previous in-person hearing, the AG's final response to the  
          hearing officer's proposed decision includes the following  
          statement: "At age 16, Rocha affiliated with gangs, violated the  
          express terms of his probation, and sold marijuana.  But he  
          probably did not commit murder or attempted murder.  In the  
          final analysis that is the only issue that matters.   
          Accordingly, the Attorney General does not intend to challenge  

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          the hearing officer's recommendation."

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  Yes   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  No


          According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:


            Stale-dated warrants  :  General Fund appropriations in the  
            amount of $669,346.53 to pay 299 claims, and special fund  
            appropriations in the amount of $100,600.06 to pay 33 claims.   
            All of these claims are for reissuance of stale-dated warrants  
            (expired checks).  The individual claim amounts range from  
            $14.03 to $90,688.06.

            Erroneous conviction  :  General Fund appropriation in the  
            amount of $305,900 to pay the claim of Mario Rocha, approved  
            by the Board on December 12, 2013.

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  4/29/14)

          California Victims Compensation and Government Claims Board  
          (source)
          Department of Finance



          JA:d  4/30/14   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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