BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 877
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 877 (Skinner)
As Amended May 27, 2011
Majority vote
PUBLIC SAFETY 5-2 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Ammiano, Cedillo, Hill, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Blumenfield, |
| |Mitchell, Skinner | |Bradford, Charles |
| | | |Calderon, Campos, Davis, |
| | | |Gatto, Hall, Hill, Lara, |
| | | |Mitchell, Solorio |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Knight, Hagman |Nays:|Harkey, Donnelly, |
| | | |Nielsen, Norby, Wagner |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Expands existing provisions of law that allow for the
dismissal of non-felony motor vehicle offenses pending at the
time of a defendant's commitment to California Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) or the Division of
Juvenile Facilities (DJF) to also include any person serving 90
days or longer in a consecutive 12-month period in a county jail
or other county correctional facility, court or county
rehabilitation facility, or involuntary in home detention.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Exempts from prosecution non-felony offenses arising out of
the operation of a motor vehicle or offenses committed as a
pedestrian that are pending against a person at the time of
his or her commitment to CDCR, DJF, or upon serving 90 days or
longer in a consecutive 12-month period in a county jail or
other county correctional facility, court or county
rehabilitation facility, or involuntary in home detention.
2)States that a driver's license shall not be suspended or
revoked, or the issuance or renewal of that license be refused
as a result of a pending non-felony offense occurring prior to
the time a person was committed to the custody of CDCR, DJF,
or a county jail or other county correctional facility, court
or county rehabilitation facility, or involuntary in home
detention as a result of a notice received by the Department
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of Motor Vehicles (DMV) related to a person's failure to
appear in court after a written promise, or failure to pay a
fine if the offense that gave rise to the notice occurred
prior to incarceration.
3)Requires the DMV to remove from its records any notice
received by it related to a person's failure to appear in
court after a written promise or failure to pay a fine, upon
receipt of satisfactory evidence that a person was committed
to CDCR, DJF, or a county jail or other county correctional
facility, court or county rehabilitation facility or
involuntary in home detention after the offense that gave rise
to the notice occurred.
4)Provides that non-felony offenses wherein the DMV is required
by law to immediately suspend or revoke a person's driver's
license upon receipt of certified record of conviction of the
offense will not be dismissed.
5)Provides that non-felony offenses for specified
driving-under-the influence and specified reckless driving
offenses will not be dismissed.
6)States that these provisions do not apply to an offense
committed by a person while temporarily released from custody
pursuant to a law or while on parole.
EXISTING LAW dismisses non-felony offenses arising out of the
operation of a motor vehicle, or a violation of the vehicle code
as a pedestrian, that are pending against a person at the time
of his or her commitment to the custody of CDCR or DJF.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)Unknown ongoing General Fund (GF) and Special Fund costs,
likely in the range of several hundred thousand dollars, to
DMV and the courts to develop, implement and maintain systems
to expand existing law to include defendants sentenced to
county jails. Costs will include regulations, programming,
and staffing.
2)Unknown offsetting GF savings to the courts to the extent that
a significant number of minor non-felony cases - where the
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defendant has served a significant state or local sentence -
will not have to go before the courts.
3)Potential out-year GF savings to the extent that helping
former inmates retain driver's licenses results in less
unemployment and recidivism.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "One of the surest ways to
assist defendants in reintegration in society is to assure that
they are employable and able to care for themselves and their
families. A defendant who is unable to obtain a driver's
license is less employable, less likely to pay child support,
apt to drive despite the lack of a license, unable to obtain
insurance and even more troubling, inclined to return to a life
of crime - putting the greater community at risk.
"Not having the ability to legally drive is a major barrier to
re-entry and becoming a productive member of society. Quite
frequently, upon their release, these individuals often are
arrested on a warrant relating to additional charges for the
failure to appear in court for a hearing on non-felony Vehicle
Code charges scheduled for a date on which the individual was in
prison or jail and unable to appear.
"The community at large will be positively affected by this
legislation. It is estimated that it will allow well over
12,000-14,000 formally incarcerated individuals to move toward
successful reentry, resulting in a decrease in crime and a
savings in associated court and incarceration costs.
"Furthermore, it is in the public interest that courts not be
burdened with the prosecution of minor cases where the defendant
has already served a long county jail sentence/incarceration
period regardless of ultimate conviction, or term in prison and
the additional prosecution will neither substantially increase
that term or facilitate the public safety or rehabilitative
purpose of our criminal justice system. For these reasons, we
argue that AB 877 will save up to $4 million dollars in costs
and possibly more when you factor reduced work for law
enforcement, local detention facilities, and courts."
"In order to narrow AB 877, we limited eligibility and reduced
the process for seeking relief under these provisions. Recent
amendments will only apply AB 877 to those inmates serving 90
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days or longer instead of focusing on the time sentenced. This
time frame mirrors what is currently in Penal Code section 1381,
which allows inmates to do concurrent time for other offenses
and allows the dismissals of other warrants. Second, we removed
the duplicative new addition to the Vehicle Code that made it
unclear who was eligible under Vehicle Code section 41500.
Lastly, we removed all the language regarding the process for
requesting relief from DMV or the courts. This will allow these
entities to continue the process for dismal already occurring
under Vehicle Code section 41500."
Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this
bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Stella Choe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0001032