BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 172 Hearing Date: July 7, 2015
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|Author: |Rodriguez |
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|Version: |May 28, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|JRD |
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Subject: Emergency Departments: Assaults and Batteries
HISTORY
Source: Emergency Nurses Association California Chapter
Prior Legislation:SB 390 (La Malfa) - Chapter 249, Statutes of
2011
SB 406 (Lieu) - Chapter 250, Statutes of 2011
SB 409 (Lowenthal) - Chapter 410, Statutes of
2009
AB 1686 (Leno) - Chapter 243, Statutes of 2007
Support: The Association of California Healthcare Districts;
California College and University Police Chiefs
Association; California District Attorneys
Association; California Hospital Association;
California State Sheriffs' Association; County of San
Bernardino; Dignity Health; Los Angeles County board
of Supervisors; Organization of SMUD employees; San
Bernardino Public Employees Association; San Luis
Obispo county Employees Association; LIUNA Locals 777
and 792
Opposition:Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
Assembly Floor Vote: 78 - 0
AB 172 (Rodriguez ) Page
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PURPOSE
The purpose of this legislation it to increase the penalties for
assault and battery committed against a physician, nurse, or
other health care worker engaged in performing services within
the emergency department, if the person committing the offense
knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a physician,
nurse, or other health care worker engaged in performing
services within the emergency department, as specified.
Existing law defines "assault" as an unlawful attempt, coupled
with a present ability, to commit a violent injury on the person
of another. (Penal Code § 240.)
Existing law provides that assault is punishable by a fine not
exceeding $1,000, by imprisonment in the county jail not
exceeding six months, or by both the fine and imprisonment.
(Penal Code § 241(a).)
Existing law states that when an assault is committed against
the person of a peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical
technician (EMT), mobile intensive care paramedic, lifeguard,
process server, traffic officer, code enforcement officer,
animal control officer, or a search and rescue member engaged in
the performance of his or her duties, or a physician or nurse
engaged in rendering emergency medical care outside a hospital,
clinic or other health care facility, and the person committing
the offense knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a
peace officer, firefighter, EMT, mobile intensive care
paramedic, lifeguard, process server, traffic officer, code
enforcement officer, animal control officer, or a search and
rescue member engaged in the performance of his or her duties,
or a physician or nurse engaged in rendering emergency medical
care, the assault is punishable by a fine not exceeding $2,000,
by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year, or by
both fine and imprisonment. (Penal Code § 241(c).)
Existing law defines a battery is any willful and unlawful use
of force or violence upon the person of another. (Penal Code §
242.)
Existing law makes battery punishable by a fine not exceeding
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$2,000, by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding six
months, or by both that fine and imprisonment. (Penal Code §
243 (a).)
Existing law states that when a battery is committed against the
person of a peace officer, custodial officer, firefighter,
emergency medical technician, lifeguard, security officer,
custody assistant, process server, traffic officer, code
enforcement officer, animal control officer, or search and
rescue member engaged in the performance of his or her duties,
whether on or off duty, including when the peace officer is in a
police uniform and is concurrently performing the duties
required of him or her as a peace officer while also employed in
a private capacity as a part-time or casual private security
guard or patrolman, or a nonsworn employee of a probation
department engaged in the performance of his or her duties,
whether on or off duty, or a physician or nurse engaged in
rendering emergency medical care outside a hospital, clinic, or
other health care facility, and the person committing the
offense knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a
peace officer, custodial officer, firefighter, emergency medical
technician, lifeguard, security officer, custody assistant,
process server, traffic officer, code enforcement officer,
animal control officer, or search and rescue member engaged in
the performance of his or her duties, nonsworn employee of a
probation department, or a physician or nurse engaged in
rendering emergency medical care, the battery is punishable by a
fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000), or by
imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by both
that fine and imprisonment. (Penal Code § 243(b).)
Existing law states that a battery committed against any person
and serious bodily injury is inflicted on the person, the
battery is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not
exceeding one year or imprisonment for two, three, or four
years. (Penal Code § 243(d).)
This bill provides that when an assault is committed against a
physician, nurse, or other health care worker engaged in
performing services within the emergency department , and the
person committing the offense knows or reasonably should know
that the victim is a physician, nurse, or other health care
worker engaged in performing services within the emergency
department, the assault is punishable by a fine not to exceed
AB 172 (Rodriguez ) Page
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$2,000, by imprisonment in a county jail up to one year, or by
both that fine and imprisonment.
This bill states that when a battery is committed against a
physician, nurse, or other health care worker engaged in
performing services within the emergency department, and the
person committing the offense knows or reasonably should know
that the victim is a physician, nurse, or other health care
worker engaged in performing services within the emergency
department the battery shall be punished by a fine not exceeding
$2,000, by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year,
or by both that fine and imprisonment.
This bill provides that a licensed health facility that
maintains and operates an emergency department may post a notice
in a conspicuous place in the emergency department stating
substantially the following: WE WILL NOT TOLERATE any form of
threatening or aggressive behavior toward our staff. Assaults
and batteries against our staff are crimes and may result in a
criminal conviction. All staff have the right to carry out
their work without fearing for their safety.
This bill defines "nurse" as a licensed nurse of a hospital
providing services within the emergency department.
This bill defines "health care worker" as a person who, in the
course and scope of employment or as a volunteer, performs
duties directly associated with the care and treatment rendered
by the hospital's emergency department or the security thereof.
RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION
For the past eight years, this Committee has scrutinized
legislation referred to its jurisdiction for any potential
impact on prison overcrowding. Mindful of the United States
Supreme Court ruling and federal court orders relating to the
state's ability to provide a constitutional level of health care
to its inmate population and the related issue of prison
overcrowding, this Committee has applied its "ROCA" policy as a
content-neutral, provisional measure necessary to ensure that
the Legislature does not erode progress in reducing prison
overcrowding.
On February 10, 2014, the federal court ordered California to
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reduce its in-state adult institution population to 137.5% of
design capacity by February 28, 2016, as follows:
143% of design bed capacity by June 30, 2014;
141.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2015; and,
137.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2016.
In February of this year the administration reported that as "of
February 11, 2015, 112,993 inmates were housed in the State's 34
adult institutions, which amounts to 136.6% of design bed
capacity, and 8,828 inmates were housed in out-of-state
facilities. This current population is now below the
court-ordered reduction to 137.5% of design bed capacity." (
Defendants' February 2015 Status Report In Response To February
10, 2014 Order, 2:90-cv-00520 KJM DAD PC, 3-Judge Court, Coleman
v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (fn. omitted).
While significant gains have been made in reducing the prison
population, the state now must stabilize these advances and
demonstrate to the federal court that California has in place
the "durable solution" to prison overcrowding "consistently
demanded" by the court. (Opinion Re: Order Granting in Part and
Denying in Part Defendants' Request For Extension of December
31, 2013 Deadline, NO. 2:90-cv-0520 LKK DAD (PC), 3-Judge Court,
Coleman v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (2-10-14). The Committee's
consideration of bills that may impact the prison population
therefore will be informed by the following questions:
Whether a proposal erodes a measure which has contributed
to reducing the prison population;
Whether a proposal addresses a major area of public safety
or criminal activity for which there is no other
reasonable, appropriate remedy;
Whether a proposal addresses a crime which is directly
dangerous to the physical safety of others for which there
is no other reasonably appropriate sanction;
Whether a proposal corrects a constitutional problem or
legislative drafting error; and
Whether a proposal proposes penalties which are
proportionate, and cannot be achieved through any other
reasonably appropriate remedy.
COMMENTS
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1. Need for This Legislation
According to the author:
Under current law, an assault or battery against a
physician or nurse rendering emergency medical care
outside of a hospital, clinic or health care facility
is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $2,000,
or a one year in county jail, or both. However, if an
assault or battery occurs inside the health care
facility, the crime is punishable as a lower
misdemeanor with a jail time of up to six months. If
a serious injury is sustained, or weapons are used, a
battery is a felony punishable by a fine up to $2,000,
or a one year in county jail or both; or by a jail
time of 16 months, two or three years.
AB 172 specifically, increases the penalties for an
assault or battery committed against a healthcare
worker providing emergency services inside the
emergency department equal to the punishment for an
assault or battery committed outside a hospital,
clinic, or other health care facility.
Also, AB 172 allows a health facility that maintains
and operates an emergency department to post a notice
in the emergency room stating that an assault and
battery against hospital staff is a crime and may
result in a felony conviction.
2. Effect of Legislation
This legislation would increase the penalty for assault and
battery on healthcare providers, who are providing emergency
medical services in a health care facility. According the
California Hospital Association, who is in support of the
legislation:
As a community resource, hospitals have an
obligation to treat all members of the community,
including gang members, behavioral health
patients, substance abusers and victims of
domestic violence. Unfortunately, these
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situations may increase the chance of violence,
particularly in the emergency department.
Hospitals are very concerned about creating a
safe environment for patients, employees and
visitors and this take a variety of steps to
balance the creation of a healing environment
with a safe workplace. This includes use of
screening techniques, alarms and security staff.
Hospitals welcome yet another tool towards this
effort.
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, opposes
the legislation, stating:
The stated goal of this bill is to try and ensure the
safety of health care workers. Unfortunately, this
bill is misguided and would not produce the intended
results. The vast majority of assaults on health care
workers are caused by individuals who are severely
mentally ill, suffering from dementia, or undergoing
significant psychological stress. Such individuals
are not likely to be deterred by the threat of an
increased penalty. Moreover, sending mentally ill
individuals to jails is no substitute for treatment.
Cycling mentally ill people in and out of jail would
not prevent the assaults that AB 172 seeks to address.
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