Amended in Senate May 27, 2014

Senate BillNo. 1227


Introduced by Senator Hancock

February 20, 2014


An act to add Chapter 2.9C (commencing with Section 1001.80) to Title 6 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, relating to diversion.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1227, as amended, Hancock. Diversion: members of the military.

Under existing law, prosecution of an offense filed as a misdemeanor may be postponed, either temporarily or permanently, at any point in the judicial process from the point at which the accused is charged until adjudication, for the person charged to participate in a diversion program for the treatment of problem drinking or alcoholism. Additionally, prosecution may be postponed in other instances, including first-time, nonviolent felony drug offenses and for defendants with cognitive developmental disabilities.

This bill would authorize the court, with the consent of the defendant and a waiver of the defendant’s speedy trial right, to postpone prosecution, either temporarily or permanently, of a misdemeanor or a felony for which a sentence would be served in a county jail if the defendant was, or currently is, a member of the United States military and if he or she may be suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental health problems as a result of his or her military service. The bill would authorize the defendant to be referred to services for treatment and would require the responsible agencies to report to the court and the prosecution not less than every 6 months. By increasing the duties of local county mental health authorities and local prosecutors, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

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

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SECTION 1.  

Chapter 2.9C (commencing with Section 1001.80)
2is added to Title 6 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, to read:

3 

4Chapter  2.9C. Military Diversion Program
5

 

6

1001.80.  

(a) This chapter shall apply whenever a case is before
7a court on an accusatory pleading alleging the commission of a
8misdemeanor offense or a felony offense punishable pursuant to
9subdivision (h) of Section 1170, and both of the following apply
10to the defendant:

11(1) The defendant was, or currently is, a member of the United
12States military.

13(2) The defendant may be suffering from sexual trauma,
14traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance
15abuse, or mental health problems as a result of his or her military
16service. The court may request, using existing resources, an
17assessment to aid in the determination that this paragraph applies
18to a defendant.

19(b) If the court determines that a defendant charged with an
20applicable offense under this chapter is a person described in
21subdivision (a), the court, with the consent of the defendant and a
22waiver of the defendant’s speedy trial right, may place the
23defendant in a pretrial diversion program, as defined in subdivision
24(k).

25(c) If it appears to the court that the defendant is performing
26unsatisfactorily in the assigned program, or that the defendant is
P3    1not benefiting from the treatment and services provided under the
2diversion program, after notice to the defendant, the court shall
3hold a hearing to determine whether the criminal proceedings
4should be reinstituted. If the court finds that the defendant is not
5performing satisfactorily in the assigned program, or that the
6defendant is not benefiting from diversion, the court may end the
7diversion and order resumption of the criminal proceedings. If the
8defendant has performed satisfactorily during the period of
9diversion, at the end of the period of diversion, the criminal charges
10shall be dismissed.

11(d) If a referral is made to the county mental health authority
12as part of the pretrial diversion program, the county shall be
13obligated to provide mental health treatment services only to the
14extent that resources are available for that purpose, as described
15in paragraph (5) of subdivision (b) of Section 5600.3 of the Welfare
16and Institutions Code. If mental health treatment services are
17ordered by the court, the county mental health agency shall
18coordinate appropriate referral of the defendant to the county
19veterans service officer, as described in paragraph (5) of
20subdivision (b) of Section 5600.3 of the Welfare and Institutions
21Code. The county mental health agency shall not be responsible
22for providing services outside its traditional scope of services. An
23order shall be made referring a defendant to a county mental health
24agency only if that agency has agreed to accept responsibility for
25begin delete theend deletebegin insert all of the following:end insert

26begin insert (1)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertTheend insert treatment of the defendant.

begin insert

27(2) The coordination of appropriate referral to a county veterans
28service officer.

end insert
begin insert

29(3) The filing of reports pursuant to subdivision (h).

end insert

30(e) When determining the requirements of a pretrial diversion
31program pursuant to this chapter, the court shall assess whether
32the defendant should be ordered to participate in a federal or
33community-based treatment service program with a demonstrated
34history of specializing in the treatment of mental health problems,
35including substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic
36brain injury, military sexual trauma, and other related mental health
37problems.

38(f) The court, in making an order pursuant to this section to
39commit a defendant to an established treatment program, shall
40give preference to a treatment program that has a history of
P4    1successfully treating veterans who suffer from sexual trauma,
2traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance
3abuse, or mental health problems as a result of military service,
4including, but not limited to, programs operated by the United
5States Department of Defense or the United States Department of
6Veterans Affairs.

7(g) The court and the assigned treatment program may
8collaborate with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the United
9States Department of Veterans Affairs to maximize benefits and
10services provided to the veteran.

11(h) The period during which criminal proceedings against the
12defendant may be diverted shall be no longer than two years. The
13responsible agency or agencies shall file reports on the defendants
14progress in the diversion program with the court and with the
15prosecutor not less than every six months.

16(i) A record filed with the Department of Justice shall indicate
17the disposition in those cases diverted pursuant to this chapter.
18Upon successful completion of a diversion program, the arrest
19upon which the diversion was based shall be deemed to have never
20occurred. The defendant may indicate in response to a question
21concerning his or her prior criminal record that he or she was not
22arrested or diverted for the offense, except as specified in
23subdivision (j). A record pertaining to an arrest resulting in
24successful completion of a diversion program shall not, without
25thebegin delete defendantsend deletebegin insert defendant’send insert consent, be used in any way that could
26result in the denial of any employment, benefit, license, or
27certificate.

28(j) The defendant shall be advised that, regardless of his or her
29successful completion of diversion, the arrest upon which the
30diversion was based may be disclosed by the Department of Justice
31in response to a peace officer application request and that,
32notwithstanding subdivision (i), this section does not relieve him
33or her of the obligation to disclose the arrest in response to a direct
34question contained in a questionnaire or application for a position
35as a peace officer, as defined in Section 830.

36(k) (1) As used in this chapter, “pretrial diversion” means the
37procedure of postponing prosecution, either temporarily or
38permanently, at any point in the judicial process from the point at
39which the accused is charged until adjudication.

P5    1(2) A pretrial diversion program shall utilize existing resources
2available to current or former members of the United States military
3to address and treat those suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic
4brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or
5mental health problems as a result of military service.

6

SEC. 2.  

If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
7this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
8local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
9pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
104 of Title 2 of the Government Code.



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