BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 920 Page 1 ASSEMBLY THIRD READING AB 920 (Gipson) As Amended May 28, 2015 Majority vote ------------------------------------------------------------------- |Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes | | | | | | | | | | | |----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------| |Public Safety |7-0 |Quirk, Melendez, | | | | |Gonzalez, | | | | |Jones-Sawyer, | | | | |Lackey, Low, | | | | |Santiago | | | | | | | |----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------| |Appropriations |17-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | | | | |Bonta, Calderon, | | | | |Chang, Daly, | | | | |Eggman, Gallagher, | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |Eduardo Garcia, | | | | |Gordon, Holden, | | | | |Jones, Quirk, | | | | |Rendon, Wagner, | | | | |Weber, Wood | | | | | | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------- AB 920 Page 2 SUMMARY: Allows a victim's attorney to obtain a copy of the packet prepared by the parole board for purposes of a parole-suitability hearing. Specifically, this bill: 1)Authorizes the victim's attorney to request a copy of the parole board packet. 2)Requires the Board of Parole Hearings (BPH) to provide the packet to the victim's attorney, if requested, at the same time that the information is given to the district attorney. 3)Provides that the statement which the victim's representative or next of kin is allowed to submit for the parole hearing may include substantiating references to the board packet. EXISTING LAW: 1)Provides guidelines for the BPH to schedule parole hearings for prisoners in California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation for whom they are appropriate. 2)Allows the prisoner, at least 10 days prior to the parole suitability hearing, to review his or her file which will be examined by the board, and gives the prisoner the opportunity to file a written response to any material contained in the file. 3)Allows the prisoner to be present at the hearing, to ask and answer questions, and to speak on his or her own behalf. 4)Entitles the victim or next of kin if the victim has died, to be notified, upon request, of any parole-eligibility hearing and of the right to appear, either personally or by other means specified, to reasonably express his or her views, and to have AB 920 Page 3 his or her statements considered. 5)Requires the BPH to give at least 30-day's notice to the superior court judge, the defendant's trial attorney, the district attorney, and the investigating law enforcement agency, about an upcoming 6)Requires the BPH, upon request, to notify any victims of any crime committed by the prisoner, or the next of kin if the victim has died, at least 90 days before any hearing to review or consider the parole suitability or the setting of a parole date for any prisoner in a state prison. 7)Provides that the victim, next of kin, members of the victim's family, and two designated representatives have the right to appear, personally or by counsel, at the hearing and to adequately and reasonably express his, her, or their views concerning the prisoner and the case, including, but not limited to the commitment crimes, determinate term commitment crimes for which the prisoner has been paroled, any other felony crimes or crimes against the person for which the prisoner has been convicted, the effect of the enumerated crimes on the victim and the family of the victim, the person responsible for these enumerated crimes, and the suitability of the prisoner for parole. 8)Provides that any statement by a representative designated by the victim or next of kin may cover any subject about which the victim or next of kin has the right to be heard, including any recommendation regarding the granting of parole. 9)Requires BPH, in deciding whether to release the person on parole, to consider the entire and uninterrupted statements of the victim or victims, next of kin, immediate family members of AB 920 Page 4 the victim, and the designated representatives, if applicable, and shall include in its report a statement whether the person would pose a threat to public safety if released on parole. 10)Permits the victim, his or her next of kin, immediate family members, or two representatives to provide a statement in writing or a recorded statement in lieu of making a personal appearance. 11)Allows the victim to appear by means of videoconferencing, if it is available at the hearing site. FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, one-time cost to BPH in the range of $15,000 (General Fund) for computer programming costs. Assuming that the packets going to the victim attorneys would be hard copies, there would also be an annual cost in the $100,000 range. COMMENTS: According to the author, "Our justice system is based on principles of fair treatment and equal rights. However, when the victim of a crime is not allowed access to information relevant to the parole hearing of their assailant, which is provided to the inmate's attorney seeking release, there is not equality for both sides. AB 920 addresses this disparate treatment by requiring that an attorney designated by a crime victim or their next of kin is granted the same rights to discovery as the inmate's attorney and district attorney during a parole hearing." Analysis Prepared by: Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0000737 AB 920 Page 5