BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1432
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1432 (Mitchell)
As Amended January 4, 2012
2/3 vote. Urgency
PUBLIC SAFETY 4-0 APPROPRIATIONS 16-1
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|Ayes:|Ammiano, Cedillo, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Harkey, |
| |Mitchell, Skinner | |Blumenfield, Bradford, |
| | | |Charles Calderon, Campos, |
| | | |Chesbro, Donnelly, Gatto, |
| | | |Hall, Hill, Ammiano, |
| | | |Mitchell, Nielsen, |
| | | |Solorio, Wagner |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Norby |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires a parent or guardian to report to law
enforcement the disappearance or death of a child under the age
of 14 within a specified period of time. Specifically, this
bill :
1)States that any parent or guardian having the care, custody,
and control of a child under 14 years of age who knowingly
fails to notify law enforcement within 24 hours of the death
of the child if the child died under circumstances that would
lead a reasonable person to believe that the death occurred as
a result of a crime, or the disappearance of the child if the
circumstances of the child's disappearance would lead a
reasonable person to believe the child was in danger of
physical harm, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by
imprisonment in county jail for up to one year, a fine not to
exceed $2,000, or both that fine and imprisonment.
2)States that any parent or guardian having the care, custody,
and control of a child under 14 years of age who knowingly
fails to notify law enforcement within 24 hours of the
disappearance of the child shall be guilty of a misdemeanor,
punishable by imprisonment in county jail for up to six
months, a fine not to exceed $1,000, or both that fine and
imprisonment.
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3)States that nothing shall prevent an individual from being
prosecuted under another section.
4)States that this law shall be known as "Caylee's Law."
EXISTING LAW :
1)States that the desertion of a child in any place with the
intent to abandon the child is prohibited and is punishable by
imprisonment for up to one year, a fine of $1,000, or both
fine and imprisonment.
2)States that any person who, under circumstances or conditions
likely to produce great bodily harm or death, willfully causes
or permits any child to suffer, or inflict thereupon
unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering, or having the
care or custody of any child, willfully causes or permits the
person or health of that child to be injured, or willfully
causes or permits that child to be placed in a situation where
his or her person or health is endangered, shall be punished
by imprisonment in jail not exceeding one year, or in the
state prison for two, four or six years.
3)States that any person who, under circumstances or conditions
other than those likely to produce great bodily harm or death,
willfully causes or permits any child to suffer, or inflicts
thereupon unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering, or
having the care or custody of any child, willfully causes or
permits the person or health of that child to be injured, or
willfully causes or permits that child to be placed in a
situation where his or her person or health is endangered, is
guilty of a misdemeanor.
4)States that any person having the care or custody of a child
who is under eight years or age, who assaults the child by
means of force that a reasonable person would be likely to
produce great bodily injury, resulting in the child's death,
shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for 25
years to life.
5)States that every person who, having knowledge of an
accidental death, actively conceals or attempts to conceal
that death, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by
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imprisonment in a county jail for up to one year, a fine not
less than $1,000 or more than $10,000, or by both fine and
imprisonment. "Actively conceal and accidental death"
includes:
a) Performing an overt act that conceals the body or
directly impeded the ability of authorities or family
members to discover the body;
b) Directly destroying the suppressing evidence of the
actual physical body of the deceased, including but not
limited to, bodily fluids or tissues; or,
c) Destroying or suppressing the actual physical
instrumentality of death.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)Unknown minor state General Fund (GF) trial costs for creating
a new misdemeanor, with the accompanying court costs,
including courtroom and administrative staff. Costs would
depend on the number of defendants, length and depth of
proceedings, and whether a case goes to trial. For example,
if three persons annually were charged for the offense created
by this bill, resulting in an average of two days of court
time and costs, annual state GF trial costs could be in the
range of $25,000.
2)Unknown, likely minor non-reimbursable local incarceration
and/or probation costs to the extent anyone is convicted under
this section.
3)Under correctional realignment instituted in 2011, the
creation of new misdemeanors should be viewed in a new light.
Counties are taking on significant new responsibilities for
housing and supervising felons. New misdemeanors place
additional pressure on counties to identify additional
programs, including incarceration and probation, at a time
when jail and program space - and attendant staffing - will be
at a premium in many counties. While the fiscal and
programmatic consequences of most new misdemeanors are likely
to be relatively minor, any additional cumulative pressure on
realignment efforts merits careful consideration.
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COMMENTS : According to the author, "AB 1432 originally made it
a felony violation to not report the disappearance of a child,
aged 14 years or younger, to law enforcement authorities with 24
hours if the parent or guardian has any reason to believe the
child may be in danger. Further, it made it a felony violation
to fail to report to law enforcement the death of a child within
24 hours.
"Amendments taken in this committee allow for tiered misdemeanor
violations. If the child is feared to be in danger of physical
harm, the adult shall be found guilty of a misdemeanor,
punishable by imprisonment in county jail for up to one year, a
maximum fine of $2,000 or both. If the child has disappeared
under circumstances other than the fear of physical harm, the
adult shall be found guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by
imprisonment in county jail for up to six months, a maximum fine
of $1,000 or both.
"Law enforcement has known for years that the first 48 hours of
a person's disappearance are critical to the chances of finding
that child alive and successfully prosecuting any related
criminal behavior. Recent developments make it clear that we
don't have the luxury of leaving the protection of children to
others, or ignoring well-founded suspicions."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Milena Blake / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0003045