BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2005
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
2005 (Ridley-Thomas)
As Amended March 15, 2016
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Human Services |6-0 |Bonilla, Grove, | |
| | |Lopez, Maienschein, | |
| | |Mark Stone, Thurmond | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Requires the juvenile court to make certain
determinations prior to ordering an out-of-state commitment or
placement for a minor adjudged a ward of the court.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Prohibits the juvenile court from ordering the commitment or
placement of a minor adjudged a ward of the court, as
specified, in a juvenile home, ranch, camp, or forestry camp
outside of the state unless the court makes a determination of
all of the following:
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a) Such a commitment or placement is necessary to protect
the health (including the mental health) and safety of the
minor;
b) Such a commitment or placement would reduce the minor's
likelihood of reoffending; and
c) No equivalent juvenile home, ranch, camp, or forestry
camp is available in California.
2)Makes technical amendments.
EXISTING LAW:
1)States that any person who is under 18 years of age when he or
she violates any state or federal law, with the exception of
certain violent crimes as specified, or city or county
ordinance other than an ordinance establishing an age-based
curfew, is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, and
may be adjudged a ward of the court. (Welfare and
Institutions Code (WIC) Section 602)
2)Authorizes the court to make any reasonable orders for the
care, supervision, custody, conduct, maintenance, and support
of the minor or nonminor, including medical treatment, for a
minor or nonminor adjudged a ward of the court, as specified.
(WIC Section 727)
3)Authorizes the court, for certain minors adjudged a ward of
the court, to commit the minor to a juvenile home, ranch,
camp, or forestry camp, and further specifies that if no such
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setting exists within the county, the court may commit the
minor to the county juvenile hall. (WIC Section 730 (a))
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
Wards of the court: A child may become a ward of the court in
order to protect, give guidance, and punish him or her for
committing delinquent acts, and to protect the community. Two
types of petitions may be filed to place a youth under the
jurisdiction of the juvenile court: a "601" petition (named for
the code section, WIC Section 601, governing jurisdiction over
these type of wards) is for "status offenses" - which are deemed
offenses based on the young age of the individual, such as
running away, skipping school, or regularly disobeying parents;
a "602" petition (named for WIC Section 602) states that a child
has committed an act that would be considered illegal had an
adult committed it (note that, for some felonies, a child may be
tried as an adult if 14 years of age or older). If the court
finds the petition to be true, then the child becomes a ward of
the court.
The court will then make orders for the child. The child may,
under certain circumstances, be permitted to live at home or he
or she may be placed outside of the home in a setting based on
the age of, seriousness of offense committed by, and history of
delinquency of the child. In some instances, for youth found to
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have committed certain crimes, the court is authorized to commit
a child to a juvenile home, ranch, camp or forestry camp.
Out-of-state placement of juvenile wards of the court: It is
difficult to obtain exact figures on the number of wards of the
court who are placed in out-of-state settings. According to a
December 2015 article by ProPublica, "? state officials struggle
even to keep track of how many children they've sent away. They
couldn't provide a total. Using several different sources of
state data, ProPublica calculated that county probation
departments in 2015 had some 235 children living out of state."
This article also pointed to a number of difficulties with these
out-of-state placements, including limited oversight by the
state of California and concerns with the treatment of youth
placed in some of these settings.
Need for this bill: According to the author:
Unlike the adult criminal justice system, the juvenile
justice system is primarily focused on rehabilitation rather
than punishment. To this end, counties and state juvenile
facilities provide significantly more education, treatment,
and counseling programs to juvenile offenders as compared to
adult offenders.
Taking into account the recommendations of probation
department staff, juvenile court judges decide whether to
make the offender a ward of the court and, ultimately,
determine the appropriate placement and treatment for the
juvenile. Placement decisions are based on such factors as
the juvenile's offense, prior record, criminal
sophistication, and the county's capacity to provide
treatment.
Juveniles are typically placed in a county facility for
treatment, such as juvenile hall or camp, or supervised at
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home. Some juveniles are placed in out-of-state facilities.
In 2015, approximately 235 juveniles under the jurisdiction
of county probation departments were living out-of-state.
Placing juveniles in out-of-state facilities is counter to
the state's goal of rehabilitation. To improve outcomes for
juveniles affected by the criminal justice system,
California must keep them near their family, loved ones, and
support networks. According to best practices, allowing
people to remain close to their support network while
incarcerated helps their transition after release and
reduces recidivism. Placing a juvenile in out-of-state
facilities should only be used as a last resort.
Analysis Prepared by:
Daphne Hunt / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089 FN:
0002798