BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1415
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 6, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
1415 (Steinorth) - As Amended April 29, 2015
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable:
No
SUMMARY:
This bill criminalizes for 10 years the ownership or possession
of a firearm by a person who has, under Proposition 47, had a
felony conviction recalled and has been resentenced to a
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misdemeanor, or who has had a felony designated as a misdemeanor
after the completion of the sentence. The punishment for a
violation is imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one
year or in the state prison, and/or by a fine not exceeding one
thousand dollars ($1,000).
FISCAL EFFECT:
To date, approximately 3,340 individuals have had their felony
conviction recalled or resentenced to a misdemeanor since the
passage of Proposition 47. If 2% of these individuals (62)
violate the provisions of this bill in one year and 10% of these
individuals (6) are admitted to state prison, and the cost for
an admission in state prison $29,000 per year, the cost to the
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR)
will exceed $170,000 (GF).
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. According to the author, "AB 1415 corrects an
oversight of Proposition 47, which stated that those serving
or who have served sentences for felonies may be re-sentenced
with misdemeanors, but that they still maintain their
prohibition against firearm possession. While this was passed
in Proposition 47, statutory changes to the Penal code are
necessary to follow through with this policy and fulfill the
intent of Proposition 47. AB 1415 will make those statutory
changes.
"This policy only applies to persons re-sentenced or
re-classified, not those who are or have been convicted with
misdemeanors after the passage of Proposition 47. Further,
this legislation does not alter Proposition 47, and thus does
not need to return to the voters for approval."
2)Background. Proposition 47, also known as the Safe
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Neighborhoods and Schools Act, was approved by the voters in
November 2014. Proposition 47 reduced the penalties for
certain drug and property crimes and directed that the
resulting state savings be directed to mental health and
substance abuse treatment, truancy and dropout prevention, and
victims' services. Specifically, the initiative reduced the
penalties for possession for personal use of most illegal
drugs to misdemeanors. The initiative also reduced the
penalties for theft, shoplifting, receiving stolen property,
writing bad checks, and check forgery valued at $950 or less
from felonies to misdemeanors. However, the measure limited
the reduced penalties to offenders who do not have prior
convictions for serious or violent felonies and who are not
required to registered sex offenders.
Under Proposition 47, any felony conviction that is recalled
and resentenced ? or designated as a misdemeanor is to be be
considered a misdemeanor for all purposes; however, the law
states: "except that such resentencing shall not permit that
person to own, possess, or have in his or her custody or
control any firearm or prevent his or her conviction?" The
language intended that those people who had originally been
convicted of a felony be prohibited from owning a firearm.
This bill makes a conforming cross-reference to the statute
which makes it a crime for some misdemeanants to own or
possess firearms in order to reflect that limitation. It
criminalizes the ownership or possession of a firearm by a
person who successfully has had his or her prior felony
reduced to a misdemeanor under the provisions of Proposition
47.
3)Argument in Support. The California District Attorneys
Association, a co-sponsor of this bill, states, "The drafters
of Proposition 47, and the voters who passed it, very clearly
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intended existing prohibitions against firearm possession to
apply to individuals who are resentenced or reclassified under
PC 1170.18. However, the initiative did not make the
necessary amendments to include those individuals in PC 29800,
the section that actually contains the prohibition language.
"AB 1415 corrects this oversight, and in doing so, furthers the
intent of Proposition 47 by making sure that individuals who
benefit from reduced or reclassified sentences do not have
access to firearms."
4)Argument in Opposition: According to the California Public
Defenders Association, "Proposition 47, by its own terms does
not allow persons who have their convictions reduced per Penal
Code section 1170.18 to own firearms. This bill is
unnecessary."
Analysis Prepared by:Pedro R. Reyes / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
AB 1415
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