BILL NUMBER: AB 953 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 466
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 3, 2015
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 3, 2015
PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 9, 2015
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 31, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 30, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 1, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 16, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 26, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Weber
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Bonta)
(Coauthor: Senator Mitchell)
FEBRUARY 26, 2015
An act to add Section 12525.5 to the Government Code, and to amend
Sections 13012 and 13519.4 of the Penal Code, relating to racial
profiling.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 953, Weber. Law enforcement: racial profiling.
Existing law creates the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and
Training and requires it to develop and disseminate guidelines and
training for all law enforcement officers, as described. Existing law
prohibits a peace officer from engaging in racial profiling and
requires the training to prescribe patterns, practices, and protocols
that prevent racial profiling, as defined. Existing law requires the
Legislative Analyst's Office to conduct a study of the data that is
voluntarily collected by jurisdictions that have instituted a program
of data collection with regard to racial profiling.
This bill would enact the Racial and Identity Profiling Act of
2015, which would, among other changes, revise the definition of
racial profiling to instead refer to racial or identity profiling,
and make a conforming change to the prohibition against peace
officers engaging in that practice.
The bill would require, beginning July 1, 2016, the Attorney
General to establish the Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board
(RIPA) to eliminate racial and identity profiling and improve
diversity and racial and identity sensitivity in law enforcement. The
bill would specify the composition of the board. The bill would
require the board, among other duties, to investigate and analyze
state and local law enforcement agencies' racial and identity
profiling policies and practices across geographic areas in
California, to annually make publicly available its findings and
policy recommendations, to hold public meetings annually, as
specified, and to issue the board's first annual report no later than
January 1, 2018.
The bill would require each state and local agency that employs
peace officers to annually report to the Attorney General data on all
stops, as defined, conducted by the agency's peace officers, and
require that data to include specified information, including the
time, date, and location of the stop, and the reason for the stop.
The bill would require an agency that employs 1,000 or more peace
officers to issue its first annual report by April 1, 2019. The bill
would require an agency that employs 667 or more but less than 1,000
peace officers to issue its first annual report by April 1, 2020. The
bill would require an agency that employs 334 or more but less than
667 peace officers to issue its first annual report by April 1, 2022.
The bill would require an agency that employs one or more but less
than 334 peace officers to issue its first annual report by April 1,
2023.
By imposing a higher level of service on local entities that
employ peace officers, the 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.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the Racial
and Identity Profiling Act of 2015.
SEC. 2. Section 12525.5 is added to the Government Code, to read:
12525.5. (a) (1) Each state and local agency that employs peace
officers shall annually report to the Attorney General data on all
stops conducted by that agency's peace officers for the preceding
calendar year.
(2) Each agency that employs 1,000 or more peace officers shall
issue its first round of reports on or before April 1, 2019. Each
agency that employs 667 or more but less than 1,000 peace officers
shall issue its first round of reports on or before April 1, 2020.
Each agency that employs 334 or more but less than 667 peace officers
shall issue its first round of reports on or before April 1, 2022.
Each agency that employs one or more but less than 334 peace officers
shall issue its first round of reports on or before April 1, 2023.
(b) The reporting shall include, at a minimum, the following
information for each stop:
(1) The time, date, and location of the stop.
(2) The reason for the stop.
(3) The result of the stop, such as, no action, warning, citation,
property seizure, or arrest.
(4) If a warning or citation was issued, the warning provided or
violation cited.
(5) If an arrest was made, the offense charged.
(6) The perceived race or ethnicity, gender, and approximate age
of the person stopped, provided that the identification of these
characteristics shall be based on the observation and perception of
the peace officer making the stop, and the information shall not be
requested from the person stopped. For motor vehicle stops, this
paragraph only applies to the driver, unless any actions specified
under paragraph (7) apply in relation to a passenger, in which case
the characteristics specified in this paragraph shall also be
reported for him or her.
(7) Actions taken by the peace officer during the stop, including,
but not limited to, the following:
(A) Whether the peace officer asked for consent to search the
person, and, if so, whether consent was provided.
(B) Whether the peace officer searched the person or any property,
and, if so, the basis for the search and the type of contraband or
evidence discovered, if any.
(C) Whether the peace officer seized any property and, if so, the
type of property that was seized and the basis for seizing the
property.
(c) If more than one peace officer performs a stop, only one
officer is required to collect and report to his or her agency the
information specified under subdivision (b).
(d) State and local law enforcement agencies shall not report the
name, address, social security number, or other unique personal
identifying information of persons stopped, searched, or subjected to
a property seizure, for purposes of this section. Notwithstanding
any other law, the data reported shall be available to the public,
except for the badge number or other unique identifying information
of the peace officer involved, which shall be released to the public
only to the extent the release is permissible under state law.
(e) Not later than January 1, 2017, the Attorney General, in
consultation with stakeholders, including the Racial and Identity
Profiling Advisory Board (RIPA) established pursuant to paragraph (1)
of subdivision (j) of Section 13519.4 of the Penal Code, federal,
state, and local law enforcement agencies and community,
professional, academic, research, and civil and human rights
organizations, shall issue regulations for the collection and
reporting of data required under subdivision (b). The regulations
shall specify all data to be reported, and provide standards,
definitions, and technical specifications to ensure uniform reporting
practices across all reporting agencies. To the best extent
possible, such regulations should be compatible with any similar
federal data collection or reporting program.
(f) All data and reports made pursuant to this section are public
records within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 6252, and
are open to public inspection pursuant to Sections 6253 and 6258.
(g) (1) For purposes of this section, "peace officer," as defined
in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of
the Penal Code, is limited to members of the California Highway
Patrol, a city or county law enforcement agency, and California state
or university educational institutions. "Peace officer," as used in
this section, does not include probation officers and officers in a
custodial setting.
(2) For purposes of this section, "stop" means any detention by a
peace officer of a person, or any peace officer interaction with a
person in which the peace officer conducts a search, including a
consensual search, of the person's body or property in the person's
possession or control.
SEC. 3. Section 13012 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
13012. (a) The annual report of the department provided for in
Section 13010 shall contain statistics showing all of the following:
(1) The amount and the types of offenses known to the public
authorities.
(2) The personal and social characteristics of criminals and
delinquents.
(3) The administrative actions taken by law enforcement, judicial,
penal, and correctional agencies or institutions, including those in
the juvenile justice system, in dealing with criminals or
delinquents.
(4) The administrative actions taken by law enforcement,
prosecutorial, judicial, penal, and correctional agencies, including
those in the juvenile justice system, in dealing with minors who are
the subject of a petition or hearing in the juvenile court to
transfer their case to the jurisdiction of an adult criminal court or
whose cases are directly filed or otherwise initiated in an adult
criminal court.
(5) (A) The total number of each of the following:
(i) Citizen complaints received by law enforcement agencies under
Section 832.5.
(ii) Citizen complaints alleging criminal conduct of either a
felony or misdemeanor.
(iii) Citizen complaints alleging racial or identity profiling, as
defined in subdivision (e) of Section 13519.4. These statistics
shall be disaggregated by the specific type of racial or identity
profiling alleged, such as based on a consideration of race, color,
ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender identity or expression,
sexual orientation, or mental or physical disability.
(B) The statistics reported under this paragraph shall provide,
for each category of complaint identified under subparagraph (A), the
number of complaints within each of the following disposition
categories:
(i) "Sustained," which means that the investigation disclosed
sufficient evidence to prove the truth of allegation in the complaint
by preponderance of evidence.
(ii) "Exonerated," which means that the investigation clearly
established that the actions of the personnel that formed the basis
of the complaint are not a violation of law or agency policy.
(iii) "Not sustained," which means that the investigation failed
to disclose sufficient evidence to clearly prove or disprove the
allegation in the complaint.
(iv) "Unfounded," which means that the investigation clearly
established that the allegation is not true.
(C) The reports under subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall be made
available to the public and disaggregated for each individual law
enforcement agency.
(b) It shall be the duty of the department to give adequate
interpretation of the statistics and so to present the information
that it may be of value in guiding the policies of the Legislature
and of those in charge of the apprehension, prosecution, and
treatment of the criminals and delinquents, or concerned with the
prevention of crime and delinquency. The report shall also include
statistics which are comparable with national uniform criminal
statistics published by federal bureaus or departments heretofore
mentioned.
(c) Each year, on an annual basis, the Racial and Identity
Profiling Board (RIPA), established pursuant to paragraph (1) of
subdivision (j) of Section 13519.4, shall analyze the statistics
reported pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (5) of
subdivision (a) of this section. RIPA's analysis of the complaints
shall be incorporated into its annual report as required by paragraph
(3) of subdivision (j) of Section 13519.4. The reports shall not
disclose the identity of peace officers.
SEC. 4. Section 13519.4 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
13519.4. (a) The commission shall develop and disseminate
guidelines and training for all peace officers in California as
described in subdivision (a) of Section 13510 and who adhere to the
standards approved by the commission, on the racial and cultural
differences among the residents of this state. The course or courses
of instruction and the guidelines shall stress understanding and
respect for racial, identity, and cultural differences, and
development of effective, noncombative methods of carrying out law
enforcement duties in a diverse racial, identity, and cultural
environment.
(b) The course of basic training for peace officers shall include
adequate instruction on racial, identity, and cultural diversity in
order to foster mutual respect and cooperation between law
enforcement and members of all racial, identity, and cultural groups.
In developing the training, the commission shall consult with
appropriate groups and individuals having an interest and expertise
in the field of racial, identity, and cultural awareness and
diversity.
(c) For the purposes of this section the following shall apply:
(1) "Disability," "gender," "nationality," "religion," and "sexual
orientation" have the same meaning as in Section 422.55.
(2) "Culturally diverse" and "cultural diversity" include, but are
not limited to, disability, gender, nationality, religion, and
sexual orientation issues.
(3) "Racial" has the same meaning as "race or ethnicity" in
Section 422.55.
(4) "Stop" has the same meaning as in paragraph (2) of subdivision
(g) of Section 12525.5 of the Government Code.
(d) The Legislature finds and declares as follows:
(1) The working men and women in California law enforcement risk
their lives every day. The people of California greatly appreciate
the hard work and dedication of peace officers in protecting public
safety. The good name of these officers should not be tarnished by
the actions of those few who commit discriminatory practices.
(2) Racial or identity profiling is a practice that presents a
great danger to the fundamental principles of our Constitution and a
democratic society. It is abhorrent and cannot be tolerated.
(3) Racial or identity profiling alienates people from law
enforcement, hinders community policing efforts, and causes law
enforcement to lose credibility and trust among the people whom law
enforcement is sworn to protect and serve.
(4) Pedestrians, users of public transportation, and vehicular
occupants who have been stopped, searched, interrogated, and
subjected to a property seizure by a peace officer for no reason
other than the color of their skin, national origin, religion, gender
identity or expression, housing status, sexual orientation, or
mental or physical disability are the victims of discriminatory
practices.
(5) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting the changes to
this section made by the act that added this paragraph that
additional training is required to address the pernicious practice of
racial or identity profiling and that enactment of this section is
in no way dispositive of the issue of how the state should deal with
racial or identity profiling.
(e) "Racial or identity profiling," for purposes of this section,
is the consideration of, or reliance on, to any degree, actual or
perceived race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion,
gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or mental or
physical disability in deciding which persons to subject to a stop or
in deciding upon the scope or substance of law enforcement
activities following a stop, except that an officer may consider or
rely on characteristics listed in a specific suspect description. The
activities include, but are not limited to, traffic or pedestrian
stops, or actions during a stop, such as asking questions, frisks,
consensual and nonconsensual searches of a person or any property,
seizing any property, removing vehicle occupants during a traffic
stop, issuing a citation, and making an arrest.
(f) A peace officer shall not engage in racial or identity
profiling.
(g) Every peace officer in this state shall participate in
expanded training as prescribed and certified by the Commission on
Peace Officers Standards and Training.
(h) The curriculum shall be evidence-based and shall include and
examine evidence-based patterns, practices, and protocols that make
up racial or identity profiling, including implicit bias. This
training shall prescribe evidenced-based patterns, practices, and
protocols that prevent racial or identity profiling. In developing
the training, the commission shall consult with the Racial and
Identity Profiling Advisory Board established pursuant to subdivision
(j). The course of instruction shall include, but not be limited to,
significant consideration of each of the following subjects:
(1) Identification of key indices and perspectives that make up
racial, identity, and cultural differences among residents in a local
community.
(2) Negative impact of intentional and implicit biases,
prejudices, and stereotyping on effective law enforcement, including
examination of how historical perceptions of discriminatory
enforcement practices have harmed police-community relations and
contributed to injury, death, disparities in arrest detention and
incarceration rights, and wrongful convictions.
(3) The history and role of the civil and human rights movement
and struggles and their impact on law enforcement.
(4) Specific obligations of peace officers in preventing,
reporting, and responding to discriminatory or biased practices by
fellow peace officers.
(5) Perspectives of diverse, local constituency groups and experts
on particular racial, identity, and cultural and police-community
relations issues in a local area.
(6) The prohibition against racial or identity profiling in
subdivision (f).
(i) Once the initial basic training is completed, each peace
officer in California as described in subdivision (a) of Section
13510 who adheres to the standards approved by the commission shall
be required to complete a refresher course every five years
thereafter, or on a more frequent basis if deemed necessary, in order
to keep current with changing racial, identity, and cultural trends.
(j) (1) Beginning July 1, 2016, the Attorney General shall
establish the Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board (RIPA) for
the purpose of eliminating racial and identity profiling, and
improving diversity and racial and identity sensitivity in law
enforcement.
(2) RIPA shall include the following members:
(A) The Attorney General, or his or her designee.
(B) The President of the California Public Defenders Association,
or his or her designee.
(C) The President of the California Police Chiefs Association, or
his or her designee.
(D) The President of California State Sheriffs' Association, or
his or her designee.
(E) The President of the Peace Officers Research Association of
California, or his or her designee.
(F) The Commissioner of the California Highway Patrol, or his or
her designee.
(G) A university professor who specializes in policing, and racial
and identity equity.
(H) Two representatives of human or civil rights tax-exempt
organizations who specialize in civil or human rights.
(I) Two representatives of community organizations who specialize
in civil or human rights and criminal justice, and work with victims
of racial and identity profiling. At least one representative shall
be between 16 and 24 years of age.
(J) Two religious clergy members who specialize in addressing and
reducing racial and identity bias toward individuals and groups.
(K) Up to two other members that the Governor may prescribe.
(L) Up to two other members that the President Pro Tempore of the
Senate may prescribe.
(M) Up to two other members that the Speaker of the Assembly may
prescribe.
(3) Each year, on an annual basis, RIPA shall do the following:
(A) Analyze the data reported pursuant to Section 12525.5 of the
Government Code and Section 13012 of the Penal Code.
(B) Analyze law enforcement training under this section.
(C) Work in partnership with state and local law enforcement
agencies to review and analyze racial and identity profiling policies
and practices across geographic areas in California.
(D) Conduct, and consult available, evidence-based research on
intentional and implicit biases, and law enforcement stop, search,
and seizure tactics.
(E) Issue a report that provides RIPA's analysis under
subparagraphs (A) to (D), inclusive, detailed findings on the past
and current status of racial and identity profiling, and makes policy
recommendations for eliminating racial and identity profiling. RIPA
shall post the report on its Internet Web site. Each report shall
include disaggregated statistical data for each reporting law
enforcement agency. The report shall include, at minimum, each
reporting law enforcement agency's total results for each data
collection criteria under subdivision (b) of Section 12525.5 of the
Government Code for each calendar year. The reports shall be retained
and made available to the public by posting those reports on the
Department of Justice's Internet Web site. The first annual report
shall be issued no later than January 1, 2018. The reports are public
records within the meaning of subdivision (d) of Section 6252 of the
Government Code and are open to public inspection pursuant to
Sections 6253, 6256, 6257, and 6258 of the Government Code.
(F) Hold at least three public meetings annually to discuss racial
and identity profiling, and potential reforms to prevent racial and
identity profiling. Each year, one meeting shall be held in northern
California, one in central California, and one in southern
California. RIPA shall provide the public with notice of at least 60
days before each meeting.
(4) Pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 12525.5 of the
Government Code, RIPA shall advise the Attorney General in developing
regulations for the collection and reporting of stop data, and
ensuring uniform reporting practices across all reporting agencies.
(5) Members of RIPA shall not receive compensation, nor per diem
expenses, for their services as members of RIPA.
(6) No action of RIPA shall be valid unless agreed to by a
majority of its members.
(7) The initial terms of RIPA members shall be four years.
(8) Each year, RIPA shall elect two of its members as
cochairpersons.
SEC. 5. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local
agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant
to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of
the Government Code.