BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2013
Page 1
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
AB 2013
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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
AB 2013
Page 3
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
AB 2013
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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