BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 545
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
545 (Melendez)
As Amended September 4, 2015
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |80-0 |(June 1, 2015) |SENATE: | 39-0 |(September 9, |
| | | | | |2015) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY: Imposes minimum period of imprisonment in county jail
of two days for individuals convicted of domestic battery with a
prior conviction for domestic violence. Makes the law
consistent with situations when individual has prior conviction
for domestic battery.
The Senate amendments include language from AB 172 (Rodriguez)
of the current legislative session to avoid chaptering out
issues.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Defines as a crime, any battery committed against a spouse, a
person with whom the defendant is cohabiting, a person who is
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the parent of the defendant's child, former spouse, fiancé, or
fiancée, or a person with whom the defendant currently has, or
has previously had, a dating or engagement relationship.
2)Imposes punishment for such a battery by a fine not exceeding
$2,000, or by imprisonment in a county jail for a period of
not more than one year, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
If probation is granted, or the execution or imposition of
the sentence is suspended, it shall be a condition thereof
that the defendant participate in, for no less than one year,
and successfully complete, a batterer's treatment program, as
specified, or if none is available, another appropriate
counseling program designated by the court.
3)Requires that if probation is granted or the execution or
imposition of the sentence is suspended and the person has
been previously convicted of domestic battery, the person
shall be imprisoned for not less than 48 hours in addition to
the conditions required. However, the court, upon a showing
of good cause, may elect not to impose the mandatory minimum
imprisonment as required by this subdivision and may, under
these circumstances, grant probation or order the suspension
of the execution or imposition of the sentence.
4)Specifies that if probation is granted, the conditions of
probation may include, in lieu of a fine, one or both of the
following requirements:
a) That the defendant make payments to a battered women's
shelter, up to a maximum of $5,000.
b) That the defendant reimburse the victim for reasonable
costs of counseling and other reasonable expenses that the
court finds are the direct result of the defendant's
offense.
5)For any order to pay a fine, make payments to a battered
women's shelter, or pay restitution as a condition of
probation under this subdivision, the court shall make a
determination of the defendant's ability to pay. In no event
shall any order to make payments to a battered women's shelter
be made if it would impair the ability of the defendant to pay
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direct restitution to the victim or court-ordered child
support. If the injury to a married person is caused in whole
or in part by the criminal acts of his or her spouse in
violation of this section, the community property shall not be
used to discharge the liability of the offending spouse for
restitution to the injured spouse until all separate property
of the offending spouse is exhausted.
6)States that person who willfully inflicts corporal injury
resulting in a traumatic condition upon a victim is guilty of
a felony, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by
imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four
years, or in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a
fine of up to $6,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
7)Defines "victim" as the offender's spouse or former spouse,
the offender's cohabitant or former cohabitant, the offender's
fiancé or fiancée, or someone with whom the offender has, or
previously had, an engagement or dating relationship, as
defined, or the mother or father of the offender's child.
8)Defines "traumatic condition" means a condition of the body,
such as a wound, or external or internal injury, including,
but not limited to, injury as a result of strangulation or
suffocation, whether of a minor or serious nature, caused by a
physical force. For purposes of this section, "strangulation"
and "suffocation" include impeding the normal breathing or
circulation of the blood of a person by applying pressure on
the throat or neck.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill:
1)Required a minimum of two days of imprisonment when an
individual is convicted of domestic battery probation is
granted, and the individual has a prior conviction for
domestic violence.
2)Allowed the court, on a showing of good cause, to choose not
to impose the minimum imprisonment.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
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Committee, ongoing increase in non-reimbursable local
incarceration costs, potentially in excess of $50,000 (General
Fund*) annually, to the extent future convictions for domestic
battery result in additional county jail costs for individuals
with prior DV convictions who otherwise would not have been
subject to the minimum jail sentence. According to DOJ data,
there are over 10,000 convictions under Penal Code Section 273.5
(DV) each year. It is unknown what portion of the 7,000 annual
convictions for domestic battery would potentially be impacted
by this measure, but for every 250 individuals (3.5 percent of
domestic battery convictions) impacted, would result in
increased county jail costs of about $50,000 based on an
estimated daily jail rate of $100 and the minimum period of 48
hours.
*Proposition 30 (2012) provides that legislation enacted after
September 30, 2012, that has an overall effect of increasing the
costs already borne by a local agency, as specified, apply to
local agencies only to the extent the State provides annual
funding for the cost increase. Although legislation creating a
new crime or revising the definition of an existing crime is
exempt from Proposition 30 state funding requirements,
legislation that changes the penalty for an existing crime is
not similarly specifically exempt. As domestic battery and
domestic violence are existing crimes, to the extent the
provisions of this measure are determined to change the penalty
for these crimes, any increase in costs to local agencies
attributable to the provisions of this legislation could
potentially require annual funding from the State.
COMMENTS: According to the author, "We must make certain that
repeat domestic abusers are recognized in the law as repeat
offenders and held accountable to their actions, regardless of
the order in which their crimes are committed."
Analysis Prepared by:
David Billingsley / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0002249
AB 545
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