BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2147
Page 1
GOVERNOR'S VETO
AB
2147 (Eggman)
As Enrolled August 22, 2016
2/3 vote
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
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|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Public Safety |5-1 |Jones-Sawyer, |Lopez |
| | |Melendez, Lackey, | |
| | |Low, Santiago | |
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| | | | |
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|ASSEMBLY: |76-1 |(April 21, |SENATE: |35-3 |(August 15, |
| | |2016) | | |2016) |
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| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
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SUMMARY: Specifies solicitation of prostitution offenses,
currently authorized under existing state law, do not need to be
AB 2147
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authorized by a local ordinance. Specifically, this bill:
1)Provides that a vehicle used in the commission of a crime
related to prostitution by a person buying or attempting to
buy sexual services is a nuisance subject to an impoundment
period of up to 30 days.
a) Specifies that a motor vehicle is a public nuisance
subject to seizure by a local law enforcement agency and an
impoundment period of up to 30 days when the motor vehicle
is used in the commission or attempted commission of a
violation solicitation by a person buying or attempting to
buy sexual services if the owner or operator of the vehicle
has had a prior conviction for the same offense within the
past three years; and
b) The vehicle may only be impounded pursuant to a valid
arrest by a local law enforcement agency of the driver for
a violation of solicitation for buying or attempting to buy
sexual services.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Permits local jurisdictions to adopt local ordinances
permitting impoundment of vehicles for violations of
prostitution, pimping, and pandering offenses in the same
manner with the same procedural protections as provided in
this bill.
2)States notwithstanding any other provision of law and except
as provided in this provision, a motor vehicle is subject to
forfeiture as a nuisance if it is driven on a California
highway by a driver with a suspended or revoked license, or by
an unlicensed driver, who is a registered owner of the vehicle
at the time of impoundment and has a previous misdemeanor
conviction for driving on a suspended or revoked license.
3)Prohibits a peace officer from impounding a vehicle, as
specified, if the license of the driver expired within the
preceding 30 days and the driver would otherwise have been
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properly licensed.
4)Provides that a peace officer may exercise discretion in a
situation where the driver without a valid license is an
employee driving a vehicle registered to the employer in the
course of employment. A peace officer may also exercise
discretion in a situation where the driver without a valid
license is the employee of a bona fide business establishment
or is a person otherwise controlled by such an establishment
and it reasonably appears that an owner of the vehicle, or an
agent of the owner, relinquished possession of the vehicle to
the business establishment solely for servicing or parking of
the vehicle or other reasonably similar situations, and where
the vehicle was not to be driven except as directly necessary
to accomplish that business purpose. In this event, if the
vehicle can be returned to or be retrieved by the business
establishment or registered owner, the peace officer may
release and not impound the vehicle.
5)Provides a registered or legal owner of record at the time of
impoundment may request a hearing to determine the validity of
the impoundment, as specified.
6)States if the driver of a vehicle impounded, as specified, was
not a registered owner of the vehicle at the time of
impoundment, or if the driver of the vehicle was a registered
owner of the vehicle at the time of impoundment but the driver
does not have a previous conviction for driving on a suspended
or revoked license, the vehicle shall be released pursuant to
the Vehicle Code and is not subject to forfeiture.
FISCAL EFFECT: None. This bill has been keyed non-fiscal by
the Legislative Counsel.
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COMMENTS: According to the author, "Human trafficking is modern
day slavery and, currently in the United States, there are more
than 100,000 American minors being exploited in the domestic
minor sex trafficking industry. Unfortunately, sex trafficking
among minors is only growing in California and continues to
exploit the lives of children, leaving no city or county immune
to the horrors of this industry.
"Although steps have been taken to address sex trafficking
within the past few years, the exploiters who sell these minors
and the sex buyers are still fully operating in California. The
sex buyers in particular perpetuate a violent, exploitative
industry often without serious fines or sentencing. These sex
buyers are committing a crime when they choose to participate in
human trafficking and it must be addressed with penalties and
awareness to fully and successfully combat human trafficking
from all sides.
"AB 2147 will give cities and counties the option to impound
vehicles of sex buyers upon arrest regardless of whether or not
the city or county has adopted a local ordinance allowing it.
However, this bill includes provisions to allow a spouse,
registered domestic partner, or other affected third party
subjects to retrieve the vehicle on that grounds that it would
create hardship."
GOVERNOR'S VETO MESSAGE:
This bill allows the seizure and impoundment of a
vehicle used for the solicitation of prostitution
without the current requirement that a local governing
body approve an authorizing ordinance.
Current law permits local governments to pass
ordinances providing for the impoundment of vehicles
used in a number of crimes related to prostitution.
This bill seeks to remove the local ordinance
requirement only for solicitation, while leaving it in
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place for other offenses such as pimping and
pandering.
While I am in agreement with the author's broader
desire to combat human trafficking in our communities,
I believe existing law is sufficient in permitting the
use of vehicle impoundment as a means of doing so.
Analysis Prepared by:
Gabriel Caswell / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN:
0005141