BILL ANALYSIS �
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE BILL NO: ACR 158
SENATOR MARK DESAULNIER, CHAIRMAN AUTHOR: Perea
VERSION: 6/5/14
Analysis by: Erin Riches FISCAL: yes
Hearing date: August 12, 2014
SUBJECT:
California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officers Brian M. Law and Juan
J. Gonzalez Memorial Highway
DESCRIPTION:
This resolution designates a portion of State Highway Route (SR)
99 in Fresno County as the CHP Officers Brian M. Law and Juan J.
Gonzalez Memorial Highway.
ANALYSIS:
The committee has adopted a policy regarding the naming of state
highways or structures. Under the policy, the committee will
consider only those resolutions that meet all of the following
criteria:
The person being honored must have provided extraordinary
public service or some exemplary contribution to the public
good and have a connection to the community where the highway
or structure is located.
The person being honored must be deceased.
The naming must be done without cost to the state. Costs for
signs and plaques must be paid by local or private sources.
The author or co-author of the resolution must represent the
district in which the facility is located, and the resolution
must identify the specific highway segment or structure being
named.
The segment of highway being named must not exceed five miles
in length.
The proposed designation must reflect a community consensus
and be without local opposition.
The proposed designation may not supersede an existing
ACR 158 (PEREA) Page 2
designation unless the sponsor can document that a good-faith
effort has uncovered no opposition to rescinding the prior
designation.
This resolution designates the portion of SR 99 from the
Fresno/Tulare county line to the Mountain View Avenue
overcrossing in Fresno County as the CHP Officers Brian M. Law
and Juan J. Gonzalez Memorial Highway. This resolution further
requests that the Department of Transportation erect appropriate
signs upon receiving donations from non-state sources to cover
the costs.
COMMENTS:
1.Purpose . The author introduced this resolution to honor the
life and service of CHP Officers Brian M. Law and Juan J.
Gonzalez.
2.Background on Officers Law and Gonzalez . Brian Law was born
on July 2, 1979, in Redwood City, California. He served in
the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Air Force. He graduated
from the CHP Academy in April 2008 and was assigned to
Oakland, where he served for five years before being
transferred to Fresno. At the time of his death, Officer Law
and his wife were about to open a kickboxing studio for women
in north Fresno.
Juan Gonzalez was born on February 10, 1981. He graduated
from Fresno State University and was a classmate of Officer
Law at the CHP Academy, also graduating in April 2008. He was
then assigned to San Jose, where he served for two years
before being transferred to Fresno.
On February 17, 2014, Officers Law and Gonzalez died in a
single-vehicle crash while responding to an accident, which
had been incorrectly reported in the opposite direction.
Nearing the scene of the accident, the officers swerved to
avoid a pedestrian who had been involved in the accident and
struck a guardrail, causing their vehicle to overturn. Both
officers suffered fatal injuries and were pronounced dead at
the scene.
Officer Law is survived by his mother, wife, daughter, son,
stepdaughter, and sister. Officer Gonzalez is survived by his
mother and sister.
3.Consistent with committee policy . This resolution is
ACR 158 (PEREA) Page 3
consistent with the provisions of the committee's policy on
highway designations.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 78-0
Appr: 17-0
Trans: 13-0
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday, August 6,
2014.)
SUPPORT: California Association of Highway Patrolmen
(sponsor)
OPPOSED: None received.