BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 1771 Page 1 ASSEMBLY THIRD READING AB 1771 (O'Donnell) As Amended May 19, 2016 Majority vote ------------------------------------------------------------------ |Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Public Safety |6-1 |Jones-Sawyer, |Quirk | | | |Melendez, Lackey, | | | | |Lopez, Low, Santiago | | | | | | | |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------| |Appropriations |19-1 |Gonzalez, Bigelow, |Quirk | | | |Bloom, Bonilla, | | | | |Bonta, Calderon, | | | | |Patterson, Daly, | | | | |Eggman, Gallagher, | | | | |Eduardo Garcia, Roger | | | | |Hernández, Holden, | | | | |Jones, Obernolte, | | | | |Santiago, Wagner, | | | | |Weber, Wood | | | | | | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------ AB 1771 Page 2 SUMMARY: Increases the punishment for supervising or aiding a prostitute from up to 6 months in the county jail to up to a year in the county jail, and adds additional circumstances that can be considered in determining whether someone is guilty of a violation of supervising or aiding a prostitute. Specifically, this bill: 1)Increases the penalty for soliciting or aiding a prostitute from a maximum sentence of 6 months in the county jail to a maximum of one year in the county jail. 2)Specifies that if someone is repeatedly speaking to or communicating with a person who is soliciting sex for money or a person who is offering sexual services for compensation, they may be guilty of the crime of supervising or aiding a prostitute. 3)Specifies that if someone repeatedly or continuously monitors or watches another person who is soliciting sex for money or a person who is offering sexual services for compensation, they may be guilty of the crime of supervising or aiding a prostitute. 4)Specifies that if someone receives or appears to receive money from another person who is soliciting sex for money or a person who is offering sexual services for compensation, they may be guilty of the crime of supervising or aiding a prostitute. 5)Permits prior human trafficking convictions to be considered in determining whether a person may be guilty of the crime of supervising or aiding a prostitute. 6)States that a juvenile court may dismiss charges against a juvenile for this offense upon a finding that the juvenile who is alleged to have supervised or aided a prostitute did so due to coercion or duress, as defined. AB 1771 Page 3 EXISTING LAW: 1)Provides that a person may not direct, supervise, recruit, or otherwise aid another person in the commission of a violation of specified prostitution offenses. Additionally, a person may not collect or receive all or part of the proceeds earned from an act or acts of prostitution committed by another person. Violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in the county jail. 2)Provides that in determining whether a person is guilty of directing or supervising a prostitute, the following circumstances may be considered: a) The offender repeatedly speaks or communicates with another person who is acting in violation of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. b) The offender repeatedly or continuously monitors or watches another person who is acting in violation of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. c) The offender repeatedly engages or attempts to engage in conversation with pedestrians or motorists to solicit, arrange, or facilitate an act of prostitution between the pedestrians or motorists and another person who is acting in violation of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. d) The offender repeatedly stops or attempts to stop pedestrians or motorists to solicit, arrange, or facilitate an act of prostitution between pedestrians or motorists and another person who is acting in violation of loitering for AB 1771 Page 4 the purpose of engaging in prostitution. e) The offender circles an area in a motor vehicle and repeatedly beckons to, contacts, or attempts to contact or stop pedestrians or other motorists to solicit, arrange, or facilitate an act of prostitution between the pedestrians or motorists and another person who is acting in violation of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. f) The offender receives or appears to receive money from another person who is acting in violation of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. g) The offender engages in any of the behavior described above, inclusive, in regard to, or on behalf of two or more persons who are in violation of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution. h) The offender has been convicted of violating specified prostitution related offenses. i) The offender has engaged, within six months prior to the arrest in any behavior described in this subdivision, or in any other behavior indicative of prostitution activity. FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, moderate nonreimbursable costs to cities and counties for enforcement, offset to some extent by fine revenues. COMMENTS: According to the author, "Criminal street gangs have been continually evolving new methods to fund gang activities for decades. In recent years, they have increasingly migrated AB 1771 Page 5 to commercial sexual exploitation as a new source of illicit income. These criminals view human trafficking as a more profitable and lower risk enterprise than drug or weapons trafficking. While a trafficker must invest additional resources each time he wants to sell a gun or drugs, he can sell a single person over and over again. "AB 1771 gives discretion to judges to impose a longer sentence when justified. The bill also makes admissible evidence that can help judges and juries determine when a suspect is an integral piece of gang operations. This will allow us to deal significant damage to the human trafficking operations of these gangs and help protect the victims of this horrible underground sexual abuse." Analysis Prepared by: Gabriel Caswell/ PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN: 0003029