BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 212|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 212
Author: Mendoza (D)
Amended: 7/2/15
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 6-0, 4/14/15
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Leno, McGuire, Monning, Stone
NO VOTE RECORDED: Liu
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 5/28/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
SENATE FLOOR: 40-0, 6/3/15
AYES: Allen, Anderson, Bates, Beall, Berryhill, Block,
Cannella, De León, Fuller, Gaines, Galgiani, Glazer, Hall,
Hancock, Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Huff, Jackson,
Lara, Leno, Leyva, Liu, McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning,
Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Pan, Pavley, Roth, Runner,
Stone, Vidak, Wieckowski, Wolk
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 7/9/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Controlled substances: factors in aggravation
SOURCE: California District Attorneys Association
DIGEST: This bill authorizes the court to apply a specified
factor in aggravation in cases when sentencing a defendant for
manufacturing methamphetamine or concentrated cannabis based on
the distance from the scene of the offense to an occupied
residence or any structure in which persons are present at the
time of the offense. The applicable distance is 200 feet in
methamphetamine cases and 300 feet in concentrated cannabis
cases.
SB 212
Page 2
Assembly Amendments are essentially technical and specify,
consistent with general sentencing rules, that the aggravating
factor defined in this bill does not apply if the court imposes
an enhancement based on the fact that a person in a residence
where the crime occurred was a minor under the age of 16 years.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1)Provides that any person who manufactures, compounds,
converts, produces, derives, processes, or prepares specified
controlled substances is guilty of a felony, punishable by
imprisonment in the state prison for three, five or seven
years. (Health & Saf. Code § 11379.6.)
2)Any person convicted of the manufacture of methamphetamine or
PCP where the offense occurs in a structure where a child
under 16 years of age is present shall be punished by an
additional and consecutive two years in state prison.
(Health & Saf. Code § 11379.7, subd , (a).)
3)Provides that any person convicted of manufacturing or
attempting to manufacture methamphetamine or Phencyclidine
(PCP), or possessing or attempting to possess specified
substances with the intent to manufacture methamphetamine or
PCP, when the commission or attempted commission of the crime
occurs in a structure where any child under 16 years of age is
present, shall, in addition and consecutive to the punishment
prescribed for the felony of which he or she has been
convicted, be punished by an additional term of two years in
the state prison. (Health & Saf. Code § 11379.7, subd. (a).)
4)States that any person convicted of manufacturing or
attempting to manufacture methamphetamine or PCP, or
possessing or attempting to possess specified substances with
the intent to manufacture methamphetamine or PCP, where the
commission of the crime causes any child under 16 years of age
to suffer great bodily injury, shall, in addition and
consecutive to the punishment prescribed for the felony of
which he or she has been convicted, be punished by an
SB 212
Page 3
additional term of five years in the state prison. (Health &
Saf. Code § 11379.7, subd. (b).)
5)Provides that any person convicted of the manufacture of
methamphetamine or PCP where the commission of the offense
causes a child under 16 years of age to suffer great bodily
injury shall be punished by an additional and consecutive five
years in state prison. (Health & Saf. Code § 11379.7 subd.
(b).)
This bill:
1)Provides, except where a specified enhancement applies, that
where a defendant is convicted of manufacturing
methamphetamine by chemical extraction or synthesis, the court
may consider as a factor in aggravation that the crime was
committed within 200 feet of an occupied residence or any
structure where another person was present at the time the
offense was committed;
2)Provides, except where a specified enhancement applies. that
where the defendant manufactured concentrated cannabis by such
a method, the court may consider as a factor in aggravation
that the crime was committed within 300 feet of an occupied
residence or any structure where another person was present at
the time the offense was committed.
Background
The dangers of manufacturing methamphetamine - explosions, fires
and toxic waste - are relatively well known. Persons near the
site of methamphetamine manufacturing are placed in danger of
injury or illness from the manufacturing itself and the toxic
waste that is often dumped at the place of manufacturing. This
bill authorizes the court to consider that manufacturing
occurred within 200 feet of any place where a person resided or
was present at the time of the crime as a factor in aggravation
justifying the upper term. A factor in aggravation is a fact
that demonstrates that the offense committed by the defendant
was more egregious than the average crime involving a violation
of the same law.
SB 212
Page 4
Concentrated cannabis comes in many forms. Hash oil is
generally made by using a solvent to strip the essential oils
from marijuana plant matter. The resulting material is often
described as "honey oil" or "wax," reflecting the appearance of
the product. A relatively new and popular form of concentrated
cannabis is "butane honey oil" or "BHO." BHO is commonly made
by packing marijuana in a steel or glass tube, introducing or
injecting butane in one end of the tube and straining the liquid
material that emerges from the other end of the tube. The
liquid may be heated - in warm water - to purge the butane. The
resulting product is a resin or oil. Butane is volatile and
highly flammable. Using too much heat or exposing the butane to
a spark can cause an explosion, especially inside a structure,
as evaporated butane gas can fill a room. Extracting BHO
outside allows the butane vapors to dissipate into the air.
Other solvents - including alcohol - can be used to produce hash
oil.
This bill authorizes the court to consider that the defendant
manufactured concentrated cannabis through the use of a chemical
solvent within 300 feet of an occupied residence or place where
others were present at the time of manufacturing as a factor in
aggravation. The 300 feet proximity standard applies to
concentrated cannabis manufacturing by chemical extraction
because explosions from that process can be quite powerful. BHO
manufacturing explosion can severely damage or destroy the place
of manufacturing, severely damage nearby structures and injure
or kill nearby persons. Where property is damaged or persons
are injured or killed, additional charges and penalties would
apply. This bill addresses the dangers presented by
manufacturing concentrated cannabis through use of a chemical
solvent, not actual damage caused by the process.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified 7/9/15)
California District Attorneys Association (source)
Alameda County District Attorney's Office
SB 212
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Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs
California Association of Code Enforcement Officers
California College and University Police Chiefs
California Narcotics Officers Association
California State Lodge, Fraternal Order of Police
California State Sheriffs' Association
California Peace Officers' Association
California Police Chiefs Association
City of Montebello
City of Norwalk
City if Whittier
Crime Victims Action Alliance
Long Beach Police Officers Association
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
Los Angeles County Professional Peace Officers Association
Los Angeles Police Protective League
Riverside Sheriffs Association
Sacramento County Deputy Sheriffs' Association
OPPOSITION: (Verified 7/9/15)
California Public Defenders Association
Legal services for Prisoners with Children
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 7/9/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,
Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle,
Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina
Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,
Gordon, Gray, Hadley, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea,
Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Grove, Harper
SB 212
Page 6
Prepared by:Jerome McGuire / PUB. S. /
7/13/15 9:52:19
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