BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



SENATE RULES COMMITTEE                            SB 536  
Office of Senate Floor Analyses
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                     UNFINISHED BUSINESS 
                                                              
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Bill No:  SB 536
Author:   Mountjoy (R), et al
Amended:  3/19/98
Vote:     27 - Urgency
                                                              
                                                             
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  SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE  :  8-0, 4/8/97
AYES:  Vasconcellos, Rainey, Burton, Kopp, McPherson,  
  Polanco, Schiff, Watson

  SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  Senate Rule 28.8

  SENATE FLOOR  :  35-0, 5/1/97
AYES:  Alpert, Ayala, Brulte, Costa, Dills, Greene, Haynes,  
  Hughes, Hurtt, Johannessen, Johnson, Johnston, Karnette,  
  Kelley, Knight, Kopp, Lee, Leslie, Lewis, Lockyer, Maddy,  
  McPherson, Monteith, Mountjoy, O'Connell, Peace, Rainey,  
  Rosenthal, Schiff, Sher, Solis, Thompson, Vasconcellos,  
  Watson, Wright
NOT VOTING:  Burton, Calderon, Craven, Hayden, Polanco

  ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  70-0, 3/26/98 - See last page for vote
                                                              
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SUBJECT  :    Sexually violent predators

  SOURCE  :     Department of Mental Health
                                                              
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DIGEST  :    This bill specifies that until January 1, 1999  
the two-year civil commitment term for sexually violent  
predators (SVP) must not be reduced by any time spent in  
custody prior to the order of commitment nor shall any  
credits be applicable to reduce the two-year period.  The  
bill requires the Department of Mental Health (DMH) to  





notify local law enforcement officials 15 days prior to a  
court recommendation for community out-patient treatment or  
unconditional release of a SVP.

  Assembly Amendments  :

1.  Provide that no person may be placed in a state  
  hospital pursuant to provisions of civil commitment  
  statute until there has been a determination that there  
  is probable cause to believe that the individual named in  
  the petition is likely to engage in sexually violent  
  predatory criminal behavior.

2.  Require the Department of Mental Health (DMH) to  
  identify each person for whom a petition has been filed  
  who has not had a probable cause hearing and to so notify  
  the court.

3.  Specify that until January 1, 1999:

   A.  The two-year term of commitment shall commence on  
      the date upon which the court issues the initial  
      order of the commitment; 

   B.  The two-year period shall not be reduced by any time  
      spent in a secure facility prior to the order of  
      commitment; and 

   C.  For subsequent extended commitments, the term of  
      commitment shall be from the date of the termination  
      of the previous commitment. 

4.  Reenacts provisions repealed January 1, 1998 to (a)  
  permit the Board of Prison Terms (BPT) to order a person  
  who has been referred to DMH for evaluation to remain in  
  custody for no more than 45 days for evaluation in those  
  circumstances when the restoration of credits to the  
  person's term of imprisonment renders the normal time  
  frames for SVP commitment impracticable, and (b) require  
  a judge of the superior court to review any petition  
  submitted by an agency requesting urgency review in cases  
  where an inmate's parole or temporary parole hold will  
  expire before a probable cause hearing is conducted and  
  to determine whether there is probable cause to believe  
  that the individual is likely to engage in sexually  
  violent predatory behavior upon his or her release.

5.  Add an urgency clause.

  ANALYSIS  :    Existing law requires the State Department of  





Mental Health to notify local law enforcement officials 15  
days prior to the scheduled release of a sexually violent  
predator.

This bill instead would require the department to notify  
local law enforcement officials 15 days prior to the  
submission to a court of its recommendation for community  
outpatient treatment for any person committed as a sexually  
violent predator or its recommendation not to pursue  
recommitment of the person.

Until January 1, 1998, the Board of Prison Terms was  
permitted to order that a person who is screened as a  
sexually violent predator and referred to the State  
Department of Mental Health for full evaluation remain in  
custody for no more than 45 days.

This bill would reenact this provision.  The bill would  
provide that no person may be placed in a state hospital  
pursuant to these provisions until there has been a  
determination that there is probable cause to believe that  
the person named in the petition filed pursuant to these  
provisions is likely to engage in sexually violent  
predatory criminal behavior.  The bill also would require  
the State Department of Mental Health to identify each  
person for whom a petition has been filed who has not had a  
probable cause hearing and to notify the court that the  
person has not had a hearing.

Until January 1, 1998 a judge of the superior court was  
required to review any petition for commitment of a person  
determined to be a sexually violent predator by the State  
Department of Mental Health pursuant to the provisions  
above, and to determine whether there is probable cause to  
believe that the individual named in the petition is likely  
to engage in sexually violent predatory criminal behavior  
upon his or her release.

This bill would reenact this provision.

Existing law requires a person who is determined to be a  
sexually violent predator to be committed for 2 years to  
the custody of the State Department of Mental Health for  
appropriate treatment and confinement in a secure facility,  
as specified.

This bill would provide, until January 1, 1999, that the  
2-year term of commitment as a sexually violent predator  
commences on the date upon which the court issues the  
initial order of commitment and shall not be reduced by any  





time spent in a secure facility prior to the order of  
commitment.  The bill would specify that this provision  
does not constitute a change in, but is declaratory of,  
existing law.

  Prior legislation  :

AB 3130 (Boland) Chapter 462, Statutes of 1996 passed the  
Senate 30-1, 8/26/96; No:  Marks

  FISCAL EFFECT  :   Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
Local:  No

  SUPPORT  :   (Verified 3/27/98)

Department of Mental Health (source)
Attorney General
California Peace Officers' Association
California Police Chiefs' Association
Doris Tate Crime Victims Bureau

  ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    According to the author's office,  
existing law states that, in cases where a superior court  
makes a ruling that a Sexually Violent Predator can be  
unconditionally released, the Department to Mental Health  
(DMH) is required to notify the sheriff or chief of police,  
or both, as well as the district attorney who has  
jurisdiction over the community to which the person will be  
released, at least 15 days prior to the release.  However,  
when the court makes such a determination neither DMH nor  
any other agency has the authority to place or direct the  
unconditionally released individual to a specific  
community.  Therefore, there is no method of determining  
who should be notified of the unconditional release.

This provision mirrors one which was enacted to set forth  
the notification duties of the Board of Prison Terms and  
the Department of Corrections when convicted criminals who  
committed violent felonies are being released on parole.   
However, Welfare and Institutions Code Section 6600  
provides for a civil commitment for individuals who, in all  
likelihood, will not have any residual parole obligation.   
Unlike parolees, a person being released from a civil  
commitment has no special obligations, unless, because of  
the nature of a prior conviction, he or she must register  
with local authorities as a sex offender. 

As a practical matter, it is much more likely that the SVP  
will be out of the hospital and at court attending the  
proceedings resulting in unconditional release.  In that  





situation  it is predictable that the court would order the  
individual unconditionally released forthwith from the  
custody of the county sheriff.  In such instances there  
would be no communication from the court to the hospital.   
And the hospital, as an entity of DMH, would be in no  
position to provide the 15 to 45 day notice as required by  
the statute to any county authority.

The intent of this bill is to strengthen the law  
enforcement and victim notification procedures consistent  
with the new SVP civil commitment process.  The bill would  
provide for notification procedures, prior to DMH's  
recommendation to the court, regardless of whether the SVP  
may ultimately be conditionally or unconditionally released  
by the courts.  

ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  
AYES:  Ackerman, Aguiar, Alquist, Ashburn, Baca, Baldwin,  
  Battin, Baugh, Bordonaro, Bowen, Bowler, Brewer, Brown,  
  Bustamante, Cardenas, Cardoza, Cedillo, Cunneen, Davis,  
  Ducheny, Escutia, Figueroa, Firestone, Frusetta,  
  Gallegos, Goldsmith, Granlund, Havice, Hertzberg, Honda,  
  House, Kaloogian, Keeley, Knox, Kuehl, Leach, Lempert,  
  Leonard, Machado, Margett, McClintock, Migden, Miller,  
  Morrissey, Morrow, Napolitano, Olberg, Oller, Ortiz,  
  Pacheco, Papan, Poochigian, Pringle, Richter, Runner,  
  Scott, Shelley, Strom-Martin, Sweeney, Takasugi,  
  Thompson, Thomson, Torlakson, Vincent, Washington, Wayne,  
  Wildman, Woods, Wright, Villaraigosa
NOT VOTING:  Alby, Aroner, Campbell, Floyd, Kuykendall,  
  Martinez, Mazzoni, Murray, Perata, Prenter

RJG:jk  3/27/98  Senate Floor Analyses
              SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE
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