BILL ANALYSIS �
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2623
Author: Allen (D)
Amended: 8/21/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE : 5-1, 7/3/12
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Calderon, Liu, Price
NOES: Steinberg
NO VOTE RECORDED: Harman
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 8/16/12
AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price,
Steinberg
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 5/31/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : State hospitals: peace officers
SOURCE : California State Law Enforcement Association
DIGEST : This bill (1) requires the State Department of
State Hospitals (SDSH) and the Department of Developmental
Services (DDS) to develop a policy for the arming of
hospital peace officers; and (2) requires that the policy
be developed by June 30, 2013, and implemented by January
1, 2014.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides that every peace officer
shall satisfactorily complete a course of training
prescribed by the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and
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Training (POST). (Penal (PEN) Code Section 832, subd. (a))
Existing law provides that a person shall not have the
powers of a peace officer until he/she has satisfactorily
completed the POST course. (PEN Section 832, subd. (c))
Existing law (PEN Section 832(e)(1)) provides that any
person who has completed POST training who does not become
employed as a peace officer within three years from the
date of passing the examination, or who has a three-year or
longer break in service as a peace officer, shall pass the
examination prior to the exercise of powers as a peace
officer. This requirement does not apply to any person who
meets any of the following requirements:
Is returning to a management position that is at the
second level of supervision or higher.
Has successfully re-qualified for a basic course through
POST.
Has maintained proficiency through teaching the POST
course.
Was continuously employed as a peace officer in another
state or at the federal level during the break in service
in California.
Has previously met the testing requirement, has been
appointed a peace officer under PEN Section 830.1,
subdivision (c), and has continuously been employed as a
custodial officer as defined in PEN Section 831 or 831.5
since completing the POST course. (PEN Section 832,
subd. (e)(2)(A)-(E))
Existing law provides that a peace officer under the
jurisdiction of the Department of Mental Health (DMH) or
DDS has authority to make arrests of any person committing
a public offense on hospital grounds or any public offense
that creates an immediate danger to person or property or
of the escape of a perpetrator. (PEN Section 830.38;
Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) Sections 4313 and 4493)
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Existing law provides that a hospital peace officer may
make an arrest in a declared state or local emergency,
provided that the primary duty of the officers is be the
enforcement of the law as set forth in WIC Sections 4311,
4313, 4491, and 4493. (PEN Section 830.38)
Existing law provides that hospital peace officers may
carry firearms "only if authorized and under terms and
conditions specified by their employing agency." (PEN
Section 830.38.)
This bill provides that by June 30, 2013, the SDSH shall
develop a policy regarding arming state hospital peace
officers under its jurisdiction while those officers are
performing hospital security functions outside of the
secure area of the hospital. SDSH shall implement this
policy by January 1, 2014.
Background
Commission on POST study of various classifications of
peace officers . SB 353 (Presley), Chapter 1165, Statutes
of 1989, organized peace officer agencies and categories by
jurisdiction rather than the scope of their authority. The
bill also required a POST review of all classification
requests prior to legislative consideration of granting
peace officer status in the future or where there is a
request to change peace officer designation or status. The
bill included PEN Section 830.08, which provides that
hospital police are peace officers with specified, limited
authority.
Existing discretion of the Director of DMH to authorize
hospital police to carry firearms . PEN Section 830.38
provides that hospital police officers employed by the DMH
and the DSS may carry firearms while on duty "only if
authorized and under those terms and conditions specified
by their employing agency." (PEN Section 830.38) DMH has
contracted with the California Department of Corrections
and Rehabilitation for armed correctional officers to
provide perimeter security at Patton and Coalinga State
Hospitals. These facilities house certain classes of
potentially dangerous forensic patients who have been
committed to state hospitals from the criminal justice
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system.
DMH evaluation of security needs and plans for security
enhancements . DMH issued a 2010 report on hospital
security needs. The report noted that some forensic
patients are more dangerous than others. Schizophrenic
patients are relatively amenable to treatment, including
with psychiatric drugs. Patients with anti-social
personality disorders typically do not improve with
medication and often do not respond to other forms of
therapy. Symptomatically, anti-social personality patients
display disregard for the rights of other, lack remorse and
require more security and observation. (2010 DMH Security
Report, pp. 5-6.)
Recommendations for specialized treatment units for
aggressive patients . These units will house aggressive
patients with a propensity for violence.
Higher staff to patient ratio than other units.
Physical restraints used when patients enter or exit
rooms.
Patient rooms with high-security doors.
Atascadero State Hospital plans to modify rooms and
assign hospital police to a specialized treatment unit of
about 20-25 patients.
Open campus security issues at Napa, Metropolitan, and
Patton . Napa, Metropolitan, and Patton have open campuses
that were intended to house and treat non-forensic
patients. These following security changes have been
recommended for these facilities:
Additional lighting and fencing.
Increased use of boundaries and exclusion areas.
Teams to monitor grounds, including psych techs to
monitor patient behavior and hospital police to address
security and law enforcement.
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Increased hospital police staffing.
Statewide Security Recommendations
Video surveillance equipment to monitor patients and
prevent escape.
Upgraded alarm systems.
Keyboard controls.
New doors with windows for patient monitoring.
Furniture that can't be used as weapons.
Training staff in security and safety.
Prior Legislation Concerning Arming of Hospital Officers
AB 1289 (Horton, 2005) would have allowed peace officers at
state hospitals under the jurisdiction of DMH and DDS to
carry firearms without the authorization of the employing
agency. The bill was held on the Assembly Appropriations
Committee's Suspense File.
AB 1567 (Correa, 2003) would have allowed "limited
authority" peace officers, including those employed by DMH,
to carry firearms without authorization of their employing
agency. The bill was held on the Senate Appropriations
Committee's Suspense File.
AB 1987 (Harman, 2002) would have allowed officers employed
by various public agencies, including DMH, to carry
firearms without the authorization of their employing
agency. The bill failed passage in the Assembly Public
Safety.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
One-time costs of less than $30,000 (General Fund) for
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the SDSH and the DDS to develop system-wide policies for
arming state hospital peace officers, as specified.
Potentially minor to significant one-time and ongoing
costs for arming SDSH and DDS police officers, depending
on the extent of the policy developed by each
department. Costs for arming, including firearms
storage and training, for 25% of the approximately 800
police officers of SDSH and DDS are estimated at
$430,000 one-time and $200,000 ongoing (General Fund).
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/20/12)
California State Law Enforcement Association (source)
California Correctional Peace Officers Association
Peace Officers Research Association of California
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author:
Over the past two decades, the state has seen a dramatic
increase in the forensic population. Just thirteen
years ago half of the patient population was forensic
commitments, now over 92% of the patients have
committed some form of serious or violent felony. The
mental hospital system is bracing for the layoff of
several crucial psychiatric and therapeutic staff.
Unfortunately, this will create, though hard to
imagine, an even greater risk to the level of care and
security staff in the state mental hospital system.
Currently, the state mental hospitals rely on the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to provide
perimeter security and transports at two of the five
state hospitals. The correctional officers that
provide perimeter security and transportation services
at the state hospitals do so armed. Hospital police
officers at the remaining three state hospitals provide
the same transportation and perimeter security unarmed.
Furthermore, hospital police also do patrol and
traffic stops in marked police vehicles and provide
mutual aid to local law enforcement unarmed.
All of the officers are currently trained on the proper
use of force and firearms in their respective
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academies. They are one of the very few law
enforcement entities in the state that provides unarmed
transports of forensically committed individuals. AB
2623 merely seeks to provide the same level of
protection to hospital police officers that
correctional officers have currently at the two state
mental hospitals.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 5/31/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter,
Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gorell, Grove, Hagman,
Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger Hern�ndez, Hill,
Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lara,
Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Miller, Mitchell, Monning,
Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel
P�rez, Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio,
Swanson, Torres, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, John A.
P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Atkins, Brownley, Fletcher, Gordon,
Mansoor, Mendoza, Norby, Valadao, Yamada
RJG:dk 8/21/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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