Senate Bill No. 1070

Introduced by Senator Hancock

February 16, 2016

An act to amend Sections 3051 and 4801 of the Penal Code, relating to parole.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1070, as introduced, Hancock. Youth offender parole hearings.

Existing law requires the Board of Parole Hearings to conduct a youth offender parole hearing for offenders sentenced to state prison who committed those specified crimes when they were under 23 years of age. Existing law requires the board to complete, by July 1, 2017, all youth offender parole hearings for individuals who were sentenced to indeterminate life terms, as specified. Existing law requires the board to complete, by July 1, 2021, all youth offender parole hearings for individuals who were sentenced to determinate terms, as specified.

This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to these provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 3051 of the Penal Code is amended to
read:

3051.  

(a) (1) A youth offender parole hearing is a hearing by
the Board of Parole Hearings for the purpose of reviewing the
parole suitability of any prisoner who was under 23 years of age
at the time of his or her controlling offense.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions
shall apply:

(A) “Incarceration” means detention in a city or county jail, a
local juvenile facility, a mental health facility, a Division of
Juvenile Justice facility, or a Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation facility.

(B) “Controlling offense” means the offense begin delete or enhancement end delete
for which any sentencing court imposed the longest term of
imprisonment.

(b) (1) A person who was convicted of a controlling offense
that was committed before the person had attained 23 years of age
and for which the sentence is a determinate sentence shall be
eligible for release on parole at a youth offender parole hearing
by the board during his or her 15th year of incarceration, unless
previously released pursuant to other statutory provisions.

(2) A person who was convicted of a controlling offense that
was committed before the person had attained 23 years of age and
for which the sentence is a life term of less than 25 years to life
shall be eligible for release on parole by the board during his or
her 20th year of incarceration at a youth offender parole hearing,
unless previously released or entitled to an earlier parole
consideration hearing pursuant to other statutory provisions.

(3) A person who was convicted of a controlling offense that
was committed before the person had attained 23 years of age and
for which the sentence is a life term of 25 years to life shall be
eligible for release on parole by the board during his or her 25th
year of incarceration at a youth offender parole hearing, unless
previously released or entitled to an earlier parole consideration
hearing pursuant to other statutory provisions.

(c) An individual subject to this section shall meet with the
board pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 3041.

(d) The board shall conduct a youth offender parole hearing to
consider release. At the youth offender parole hearing, the board
shall release the individual on parole as provided in Section 3041,
except that the board shall act in accordance with subdivision (c)
of Section 4801.

(e) The youth offender parole hearing to consider release shall
provide for a meaningful opportunity to obtain release. The board
shall review and, as necessary, revise existing regulations and
adopt new regulations regarding determinations of suitability made
pursuant to this section, subdivision (c) of Section 4801, and other
related topics, consistent with relevant case law, in order to provide
that meaningful opportunity for release.

(f) (1) In assessing growth and maturity, psychological
evaluations and risk assessment instruments, if used by the board,
shall be administered by licensed psychologists employed by the
board and shall take into consideration the diminished culpability
of begin delete juveniles end delete begin insert youth end insert as compared to that of adults, the hallmark
features of youth, and any subsequent growth and increased
maturity of the individual.

(2) Family members, friends, school personnel, faith leaders,
and representatives from community-based organizations with
knowledge about the individual before the crime or his or her
growth and maturity since the time of the crime may submit
statements for review by the board.

(3) Nothing in this section is intended to alter the rights of
victims at parole hearings.

(g) If parole is not granted, the board shall set the time for a
subsequent youth offender parole hearing in accordance with
paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 3041.5. In exercising
its discretion pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) and
subdivision (d) of Section 3041.5, the board shall consider the
factors in subdivision (c) of Section 4801. No subsequent youth
offender parole hearing shall be necessary if the offender is released
pursuant to other statutory provisions prior to the date of the
subsequent hearing.

(h) This section shall not apply to cases in which sentencing
occurs pursuant to Section 1170.12, subdivisions (b) to (i),
inclusive, of Section 667, or Section 667.61, or in which an
individual was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility
of parole. This section shall not apply to an individual to whom
this section would otherwise apply, but who, subsequent to
attaining 23 years of age, commits an additional crime for which
malice aforethought is a necessary element of the crime or for
which the individual is sentenced to life in prison.

(i) (1) The board shall complete all youth offender parole
hearings for individuals who became entitled to have their parole
suitability considered at a youth offender parole hearing prior to
the effective date of the act that added paragraph (2) by July 1,
2015.

(2) (A) The board shall complete all youth offender parole
hearings for individuals who were sentenced to indeterminate life
terms and who become entitled to have their parole suitability
considered at a youth offender parole hearing on the effective date
of the act that added this paragraph by July 1, 2017.

(B) The board shall complete all youth offender parole hearings
for individuals who were sentenced to determinate terms and who
become entitled to have their parole suitability considered at a
youth offender parole hearing on the effective date of the act that
added this paragraph by July 1, 2021. The board shall, for all
individuals described in this subparagraph, conduct the consultation
described in subdivision (a) of Section 3041 before July 1, 2017.

SEC. 2.  

Section 4801 of the Penal Code is amended to read:

4801.  

(a) The Board of Parole Hearings may report to the
Governor, from time to time, the names of any and all persons
imprisoned in any state prison who, in its judgment, ought to have
a commutation of sentence or be pardoned and set at liberty on
account of good conduct, or unusual term of sentence, or any other
cause, including evidence of intimate partner battering and its
effects. For purposes of this section, “intimate partner battering
and its effects” may include evidence of the nature and effects of
physical, emotional, or mental abuse upon the beliefs, perceptions,
or behavior of victims of domestic violence if it appears the
criminal behavior was the result of that victimization.

(b) (1) The board, in reviewing a prisoner’s suitability for parole
pursuant to Section 3041.5, shall give great weight to any
information or evidence that, at the time of the commission of the
crime, the prisoner had experienced intimate partner battering, but
was convicted of an offense that occurred prior to August 29, 1996.
The board shall state on the record the information or evidence
that it considered pursuant to this subdivision, and the reasons for
the parole decision. The board shall annually report to the
Legislature and the Governor on the cases the board considered
pursuant to this subdivision during the previous year, including
the board’s decisions and the specific and detailed findings of its
investigations of these cases.

(2) The report for the Legislature to be submitted pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall be submitted pursuant to Section 9795 of the
Government Code.

(3) The fact that a prisoner has presented evidence of intimate
partner battering cannot be used to support a finding that the
prisoner lacks insight into his or her crime and its causes.

(c) When a prisoner committed his or her controlling offense,
as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 3051, prior to attaining 23
years of age, the board, in reviewing a prisoner’s suitability for
parole pursuant to Section 3041.5, shall give great weight to the
diminished culpability of begin delete juveniles end delete begin insert youth end insert as compared to adults,
the hallmark features of youth, and any subsequent growth and
increased maturity of the prisoner in accordance with relevant case
law.