BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 231|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 231
Author: Eggman (D), et al.
Amended: 5/26/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/9/15
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Glazer, Leno, Liu, Monning, Stone
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/27/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 77-0, 4/30/15 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Parole: placement at releaseParole: placement at
release.
SOURCE: Chief Probation Officers of California
DIGEST: This bill requires that an inmate who is released on
postrelease community supervision for a stalking offense not be
returned to a location within 35 miles of the victim's actual
residence or place of employment, if specified criteria are
satisfied.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
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1)Requires that, subject to specified exceptions, an inmate who
is released on parole shall be returned to the county that was
the last legal residence of the inmate prior to his or her
incarceration. (Pen. Code, § 3003, subd. (a).)
2)States that an inmate who is released on parole shall not be
returned to a location within 35 miles of the actual residence
of a victim of, or a witness to, specified violent felonies or
a felony in which the defendant inflicts great bodily injury
on any person, if the victim or witness has requested
additional distance in the placement of the inmate on parole,
and if Board of Parole Hearings (BPH) or the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) finds that there is a
need to protect the life, safety, or well-being of a victim or
witness. (Pen. Code, § 3003, subd. (f).)
3)Provides that an inmate who is released on parole for a
violation of lewd and lascivious acts or continuous sexual
abuse of a child, whom the CDCR determines poses a high risk
to the public, shall not be placed or reside, for the duration
of his or her parole, within one-half mile of any public or
private school. (Pen. Code, § 3003, subd. (g).)
4)Requires that an inmate who is released on parole for an
offense involving stalking shall not be returned to a location
within 35 miles of the victim's actual residence or place of
employment if the victim or witness has requested additional
distance in the placement of the inmate on parole, and if the
BPH or the CDCR finds that there is a need to protect the
life, safety, or wellbeing of the victim. (Pen. Code, § 3003,
subd. (h).)
5)Provides an exception allowing an inmate may be returned to
another county if that would be in the best interests of the
public. If BPH or CDCR decides on a return to another county,
it shall place its reasons in writing in the parolee's
permanent record. In making its decision, the paroling
authority shall consider, among others, the following factors,
giving the greatest weight to the protection of the victim and
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the safety of the community:
a) The need to protect the life or safety of a victim, the
parolee, a witness, or any other person;
b) Public concern that would reduce the chance that the
inmate's parole would be successfully completed;
c) The verified existence of a work offer, or an
educational or vocational training program;
d) The existence of family in another county with whom the
inmate has maintained strong ties and whose support would
increase the chance that the inmate's parole would be
successfully completed; or
e) The lack of necessary outpatient treatment programs for
parolees receiving treatment as mentally disordered
offenders. (Pen. Code, § 3003, subd. (b)(1)-(5).)
1)Requires the following persons released from prison on or
after October 1, 2011, be subject to parole under the
supervision of CDCR:
a) A person who committed a "serious" felony, as specified;
b) A person who committed a violent felony, as specified;
c) A person serving a Three-Strikes sentence;
d) A high risk sex offender;
e) A mentally disordered offender;
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f) A person required to register as a sex offender and
subject to a parole term exceeding three years at the time
of the commission of the offense for which he or she is
being released; and,
g) A person subject to lifetime parole at the time of the
commission of the offense for which he or she is being
released. (Pen. Code, § 3000.08, subds. (a) & (c).)
1)Requires all other offenders released from prison on or after
October 1, 2011, to be placed on postrelease community
supervision (PRCS) under the supervision of a county agency,
such as a probation department. (Pen Code § 3000.08, subd.
(b).)
This bill:
1)Provides that an inmate who is released from prison on PRCS
for a stalking offense shall not be returned to a location
within 35 miles of the victim's actual residence or place of
employment if the victim has requested additional distance in
the placement of the inmate.
2)States that if an inmate who is released on PRCS in his or her
county of last legal residence in compliance with the victim's
request for additional distance in the placement, the
supervising county agency may transfer the inmate to another
county upon approval of the receiving county.
3)Makes other conforming changes.
Background
Existing law provides that an inmate who is released on parole
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for an offense involving stalking shall not be returned to a
location within 35 miles of the victim's actual residence or
place of employment if the victim or witness has requested
additional distance in the placement of the inmate on parole,
and if the BPH or the CDCR find that there is a need to protect
the life, safety, or well-being of the victim. (Penal Code (PC)
§ 3003(h).)
Existing law requires specified persons (including, but not
limited to, individuals who have committed a serious or violent
felony, or persons required to register as sex offenders)
released from state prison on or after October 1, 2011, to be
subject to parole under the supervision of the CDCR, with all
other offenders released from state prison to be placed on PRCS
under the supervision of a county agency, such as a probation
department. (PC § 3000.08(a)-(c).)
This bill provides that the siting restrictions described above
- those applicable to felons being released from prison for an
offense involving stalking - apply to persons subject to parole
or to PRCS (probation).
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee: Ongoing
future minor to moderate costs, potentially in excess of $50,000
(General Fund*) statewide, to county probation departments for
the placement of inmates released on PRCS. According to CDCR
data, approximately 150 inmates per year are released on PRCS
for a stalking offense. Based on historical data, about 50
percent of inmates released on parole for a stalking offense
have required relocation services.
* Proposition 30 (2012) exempts the State from mandate
reimbursement for realigned programs, however, legislation
that has an overall effect of increasing the costs already
borne by a local agency for realigned programs, including
public safety services such as managing local jails and
providing supervision of juvenile and adult offenders, apply
to local agencies only to the extent that the State provides
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annual funding for the cost increase. To the extent the
provisions of this bill increase the workload and overall
costs of county probation departments could result in the
provision of additional General Fund support from the State.
SUPPORT: (Verified8/28/15)
Chief Probation Officers of California (source)
California Communities United Institute
California District Attorneys Association
California Probation, Parole and Correctional Association
California State Sheriffs' Association
Californians for Safety and Justice
Crime Victims United of California
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/28/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The author states, "Under AB 109
(Public Safety Realignment Act of 2011), those convicted of
felony stalking, under Penal Code 646.9, may be sentenced to a
term in state prison. Currently, offenders who are paroled from
state prison can be prohibited from moving within 35 miles of
the victim's home or place of employment. The same is not true
for offenders who have been released and placed under
Post-Release Community Supervision.
"This is because existing law, Penal Code 3003, applies only to
offenders released to parole supervision by the California
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. As a result,
Penal Code 3003 does not expressly authorize county probation to
make the same prohibitions to protect the life, safety, or
well-being of the victim."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 77-0, 4/30/15
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AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau,
Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd,
Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia,
Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove,
Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea,
Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Campos, Chávez, Gomez
Prepared by:Alison Anderson / PUB. S. /
8/31/15 8:32:13
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