BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2139|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2139
Author: Garcia (R)
Amended: 4/18/06 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/20/06
AYES: Migden, Poochigian, Cedillo, Margett, Perata, Romero
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 13-0, 8/7/06
AYES: Murray, Aanestad, Alarcon, Alquist, Ashburn, Battin,
Dutton, Escutia, Florez, Ortiz, Poochigian, Romero,
Torlakson
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 5/11/06 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
SUBJECT : Emergency protective orders
SOURCE : Shelter from the Storm
DIGEST : This bill requires law enforcement officers who
respond to an intimate violence situation to tell the
victim that they may ask the officer to request an
emergency protective order, as specified.
ANALYSIS : Current law authorizes a judicial officer to
issue an ex parte emergency protective order (EPO) where a
law enforcement officer asserts reasonable grounds to
believe any of the following:
CONTINUED
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1.That a person is in immediate and present danger of
domestic violence, based on the person's allegation of a
recent incident of abuse or threat of abuse by the person
against whom the order is sought.
2.That a child is in immediate and present danger of abuse
by a family or household member, based on an allegation
of a recent incident of abuse or threat of abuse by the
family or household member.
3.That a child is in immediate and present danger of being
abducted by a parent or relative, based on a reasonable
belief that a person has an intent to abduct the child or
flee with the child from the jurisdiction or based on an
allegation of a recent threat to abduct the child or flee
with the child from the jurisdiction.
4.That an elder or dependent adult is in immediate and
present danger of abuse, as specified, based on an
allegation of a recent incident of abuse or threat of
abuse by the person against whom the order is sought,
except that no EPO shall be issued based solely on an
allegation of financial abuse. (Family Code Section
6250)
Current law further authorizes a judicial officer to issue
an ex parte EPO where a peace officer, as defined, asserts
reasonable grounds to believe that a person is in immediate
and present danger of stalking, as specified. (Penal Code
Section 646.91)
This bill would require law enforcement officers who
respond to an intimate violence situation, as enumerated
above, to tell the victim that they may ask the officer to
request an EPO. Specifically, this bill requires a law
enforcement officer who responds to a situation in which
the officer believes that there may be grounds for the
issuance of an EPO pursuant to the above-enumerated
statutes to "inform the person for whom an EPO may be
sought, or, if that person is a minor, his or her parent or
guardian, provided that the parent or guardian is not the
person against whom the EPO may be obtained, that he or she
may request the officer to request an EPO," as specified.
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This bill additionally provides that an officer shall
request an EPO if the officer believes that the person
requesting an EPO is in immediate and present danger, as
specified.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09
Fund
State mandated local
Program Unknown, likely less than $150 annually
General
(EPO request)
Requiring officers to seek EPOs constitutes a state
mandated local program. For local governments that seek
reimbursement of costs associated with the bill, costs are
not likely to exceed $150,000 per year.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/9/06)
Shelter from the Storm (source)
American Association of University Women
Sacramento County Sheriff's Department
Lambda Letters Project
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
City of Palm Desert
Office of the San Bernardino County Sheriff
Junior Leagues of California State Public Affairs Committee
Family Law Section of the State Bar (if amended)
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
"Often times victims of domestic violence, child abduction,
elder or dependant adult abuse, or stalking are not aware
that Emergency Protective Orders (EPO) exist, that they can
request an officer to request one from a judge on sight and
that EPOs act as a temporary restraining order. As a
result victims have been beaten, in some instances to
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death, by those that they would have been legally protected
from if they only had an EPO. EPOs have and will continue
to save lives; this bill will ensure that victims of
domestic violence, child abduction, elder or dependant
adult abuse, or stalking know that they have the right to
request an EPO."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Aghazarian, Arambula, Baca, Bass, Berg, Bermudez,
Blakeslee, Bogh, Calderon, Canciamilla, Chan, Chavez,
Chu, Cogdill, Cohn, Coto, Daucher, De La Torre, DeVore,
Dymally, Emmerson, Evans, Frommer, Garcia, Goldberg,
Hancock, Harman, Haynes, Jerome Horton, Shirley Horton,
Houston, Huff, Jones, Karnette, Keene, Klehs, La Malfa,
La Suer, Laird, Leno, Levine, Lieber, Lieu, Liu,
Matthews, Maze, McCarthy, Montanez, Mountjoy, Mullin,
Nakanishi, Nation, Nava, Negrete McLeod, Niello, Oropeza,
Parra, Pavley, Plescia, Richman, Ridley-Thomas, Sharon
Runner, Ruskin, Salinas, Spitzer, Strickland, Torrico,
Tran, Umberg, Vargas, Villines, Walters, Wolk, Wyland,
Yee, Nunez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Benoit, Koretz, Leslie, Saldana
RJG:nl 8/10/06 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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