BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    AB 2013


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          Date of Hearing:  April 27, 2016


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS


                               Lorena Gonzalez, Chair


          AB  
          2013 (Jones-Sawyer) - As Introduced February 16, 2016


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          Urgency:  No  State Mandated Local Program:  NoReimbursable:  No


          SUMMARY:


          This bill establishes a five-year pilot program in Los Angeles  
          County and five other counties, requiring the judge to make a  
          finding of probable cause that a crime has been committed when  
          an out-of-custody defendant is facing a misdemeanor charge, upon  
          request by the defendant.  The five counties will be selected by  
          a five-member committee comprised of two members selected by the  
          Governor, one each by the Judicial Council, the California  
          Public Defenders Association and the California District  








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          Attorneys Association.


          FISCAL EFFECT:


          Ongoing increase in court workload and costs, potentially in  
          excess of $1.5 million for new probable cause determinations for  
          non-custodial misdemeanor defendants. Statewide, for every 10  
          percent of non-custodial defendants charged with a misdemeanor  
          who request such a determination of probable cause, annual costs  
          are estimated at $2.5 million.  Los Angeles County represents  
          approximately one-third of all filings and if five additional  
          counties participate, the cost could exceed $1.5 million, if  
          only ten percent of defendants make the request. (Trial Court  
          Trust Fund)





          The five-year pilot program will help determine if there are any  
          ongoing savings.





          COMMENTS:


          1)Background/Purpose.  Existing law provides that upon a motion  
            by an in-custody defendant charged with a misdemeanor, the  
            court shall determine whether there is probable cause to  
            believe that a public offense was committed by the defendant.   
            This bill, on a pilot project basis, extends the same right to  
            such a finding to an out-of-custody defendant.  In addition to  
            giving a defendant the ability to not have to live with a  
            potential misdemeanor hanging over his or her head, it could  








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            save a County Public Defender's Office time and money  
            investigating a case and talking to expert witnesses if a case  
            where there is not probable cause is dismissed early on.


            According to the author, "Current law is replete with various  
            means to weed out weak, baseless, or insufficiently supported  
            lawsuits, whether criminal or civil. Such means are designed  
            to prevent unnecessary stress, oppression, and expense for  
            civil and criminal defendants, and also to prevent unnecessary  
            consumption of court time and resources.  By identifying  
            meritless cases at an early stage before complex and expensive  
            proceedings, including a jury trial, such costs are prevented.

            "In the wake of Proposition 47, it has been projected that  
            misdemeanor trial courts statewide will be inundated with  
            thousands and perhaps tens of thousands of what were formerly  
            low level felonies. These courts and defendants will be  
            without the means to weed out the weakest of those charges.  
            Without additional authority to evaluate those cases, the  
            courts may very well find themselves overwhelmed with pending  
            misdemeanor trials."

          2)Support:  According to California Attorneys for Criminal  
            Justice, "Under California law, both felony-charged and  
            misdemeanor-charged defendants who are in custody, receive a  
            determination of probable cause within 48 hours of being  
            arrested.   However, misdemeanor defendants who are out of  
            custody must wait at least 10 days and such determinations can  
            take weeks or months.  These individuals must take time off  
            work, school or other activities, facing the anxiety of being  
            charged with a crime.  In the face of such demands, some  
            innocent defendants are forced to "take a deal" rather than  
            risk losing a job or failing their school work.  

          "AB 2013 would establish a 5-year pilot project in six counties  
            that would require a court, on motion by the defendant or the  
            defendant's counsel. To make a finding of probable cause in  
            determining whether a crime has been committed when the  








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            defendant is out of custody and facing a misdemeanor charge.

          3)Prior Legislation:

            AB 696 (Jones-Sawyer), of the 2015-2016 Legislative Session,  
            would have required probable cause determination for out of  
            custody misdemeanor defendants upon request by counsel.  AB  
            696 was vetoed by the Governor; the veto message was as  
            follows: 

                 "I understand the potential benefits to a defendant in  
                 having the court make this determination earlier in the  
                 process. However, the impact on the courts is unclear and  
                 could well be significant. I would welcome a small,  
                 carefully crafted pilot to assess the impact of this  
                 proposal." 


            


            Analysis Prepared by:Pedro Reyes / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081