BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 833
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Date of Hearing: June 10, 2014
Counsel: Stella Choe
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
SB 833 (Liu) - As Amended: May 8, 2014
SUMMARY : Authorizes the sheriff to offer a voluntary program
to a prisoner, upon completion of a sentence served or a release
ordered by the court to be effected the same day, that would
allow the prisoner to stay in the custody facility for up to 16
additional hours or until normal business hours, whichever is
shorter, in order to offer the prisoner the ability to be
discharged to a treatment center or during daytime hours, as
specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides that this authorization does not prevent the early
release of prisoners as otherwise allowed by law or allow
jails to retain prisoners any longer than otherwise required
by law without the prisoner's express written consent.
2)Allows the prisoner to revoke his or her consent and be
discharged as soon as possible and practicable.
3)States that offering this voluntary program is an act of
discretion under a specified provision of law that provides
immunity from civil liability to a public employee for
injuries resulting from the employee's exercise of discretion.
4)Provides that if a prisoner has posted bail and elects to
participate in this program, he or she shall notify the bail
agent as soon as possible and practicable of his or her
decision to participate.
5)Requires a sheriff offering this program, whenever possible,
to allow the prisoner volunteering to participate in the
program to make a telephone call to either arrange for
transportation, or to notify the bail agent pursuant to the
paragraph above.
6)Makes various legislative findings and declarations related to
late night release of inmates from jail.
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EXISTING LAW :
1)States that the common jails in the several counties of this
state are kept by the sheriffs of the counties in which they
are respectively situated, and are used as follows (Pen. Code,
� 4000):
a) For the detention of persons committed in order to
secure their attendance as witnesses in criminal cases;
b) For the detention of persons charged with crime and
committed for trial;
c) For the confinement of persons committed for contempt,
or upon civil process, or by other authority of law;
d) For the confinement of persons sentenced to imprisonment
therein upon a conviction for crime.
e) For the confinement of persons for a violation of the
terms and conditions of their postrelease community
supervision.
2)Authorizes a sheriff to discharge any prisoner from the county
jail at such time on the last day such prisoner may be
confined as the sheriff shall consider to be in the best
interests of the prisoner. (Pen. Code, � 4024.)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement : "Mr. Chair and Committee members, I ask
for your aye vote on SB 833. This bill will let an inmate in a
county jail delay their release voluntarily to make sure they
have safe travel or transfer arrangements to a substance abuse
treatment center, homeless shelter, reentry housing or other
facilities.
"County jails in California regularly release inmates at
night, often because state law requires they be let out before
midnight on the last day of their sentence, when a court order
requires release, if charges are dismissed, or in other
circumstances.
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"Many inmates are discharged to reentry centers for substance
abuse treatment or other services. However, most of these
centers do not have transportation services available at night
or cannot admit clients at night. Public transportation can be
limited or nonexistent at night in some areas. Safety concerns
increase for women inmates released late at night.
"This bill simply adds a new Section to the Penal Code to let
a County Sheriff offer a voluntary program for the inmate to
remain in custody for 16 hours or until normal business hours
resume the next day, so the inmate can be discharged,
transported and admitted directly to a treatment center or
other facility. The bill makes no other changes to existing
law.
"This voluntary custody will apply only if a County Sheriff
decides to offer the option. The inmate must also meet
specified requirements. There is no opposition. The Los
Angeles County Sheriff's Department is the bill sponsor, and
representatives are here to answer any questions. I ask for
your aye vote."
2)Background : According to a recent article, late night
releases from county jail poses more than just an
inconvenience. "Most everyone agrees: letting people out of
jail in the middle of the night is problematic. Humboldt
County's social services - drug abuse treatment programs, food
and shelter - are closed. The last busses - essential to
anyone arrested outside of Eureka who can't get a ride or
afford a cab - leave Eureka before 10 p.m., and don't start up
again until after 6 a.m. Schedules are even slimmer on
weekends. It's particularly troublesome for people brought
from the remote reaches of the county, the homeless, the
mentally ill and people with drug abuse problems - people
whose arrest may leave them in a state of crisis.
"Two recent killings have spotlighted the jail's policy of
releasing inmates in the early morning hours. Fresh in the
minds of local residents is the New Year's Day killing of St.
Bernard's Pastor Eric Freed, which authorities allege was
perpetrated by Gary Lee Bullock, a Redway man released from
jail hours before. Bullock had been arrested by a sheriff's
deputy on Dec. 31 and transported 65 miles north to Eureka,
where he was later released onto Fifth Street after midnight.
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"In September, a 33-year-old Eureka man was found bleeding to
death from a stab wound just blocks from the jail where he had
been released 22 minutes earlier. Police say Joshua Lloyd
Burrell was released at 12:38 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15, less
than five hours after being arrested by Rio Dell police on
suspicion of possessing a controlled substance, possessing a
narcotic, and violating his parole, according to reports from
the Times-Standard. Like Bullock, Burrell was released far
from where he was arrested - 25 miles - after intercity buses
stopped running for the night. Burrell died of a single stab
wound to the upper chest following an apparent fight outside
of the Royal Inn, which is located on Fifth Street about two
blocks east of the Humboldt County jail."
According to the same article, some counties have policies to
allow a jail to hold a person beyond the point where the
person becomes eligible for release if the person does not
appear to be able to take care of him- or herself. However,
some sheriffs insist that they are not able to hold a person
beyond the time he or she becomes eligible for release. "Even
if the jail wanted to enact a policy that, for example,
inmates wouldn't be released between midnight and 5 a.m., it
wouldn't be legal,' [Humbolt County Sheriff] Downey said. 'We
could be opening the county to all sorts of civil rights
violations' he said. 'Our policy mirrors what we can do
legally.'" (For full article
(as of May 29, 2014).)
This bill would give sheriffs the authority to offer a
voluntary program to the inmate that would allow the inmate to
remain in custody beyond his or her release date (16 hours or
until normal business hours, whichever is shorter), so that
the inmate has the ability to be discharged to a treatment
center or during daylight hours. In order to balance public
safety concerns with the rights of the person being released,
this bill requires the person's express written consent to
remain in the jail and allows the person to revoke his or her
consent and be released.
3)Arguments in Support :
a) According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's
Department , the sponsor of this bill, "Existing law
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authorizes the sheriff to discharge a prisoner from the
county jail on the last day a prisoner may be confined.
Existing law allows for the accelerated release of inmates,
upon the authorization of the presiding judge of the
superior court.
"SB 833 instead would authorize the sheriff to offer a
voluntary program to a prisoner, upon completion of a
sentence served or a release ordered by the court to be
effected the same day, that would allow the prisoner to
stay in the custody facility for up to 16 additional hours
or until normal business hours, whichever is shorter, in
order to offer the prisoner the ability to be discharged to
a treatment center or program, or during daytime hours.
The bill would specify that this authorization does not
prevent the early release of prisoners as otherwise allowed
by law or allow jails to retain prisoners any longer than
otherwise required by law without the prisoners' express
written consent."
b) According to the California Psychiatric Association ,
"People with mental illnesses are often forced out of jails
immediately upon completion of their release processing,
even if it is midnight or 2 am in the morning. For
prisoners with severe mental illnesses releases at all
hours of the night puts these vulnerable people at risk of
becoming the targets for predators. As well, treatment
programs often cannot execute what is called a 'warm
handoff' during non-business hours for the programs - which
means that staff are not there to assist in the discharge,
accompany the person with mental illness, and transport
them to a safe location, home, clinic, pharmacy or doctor's
appointment. The same conditions also apply to family or
friends who wish to help, and may not have any notification
of the release.
"It doesn't take any imagination whatsoever to realize that
without these kinds of services and supports at the point
of discharge, people with mental illness often fall through
the cracks. When they do fall through the cracks the
results can be catastrophic for some including suffering
assaults and theft of belongings, losing a supply of
prescription medication, committing a new crime, or failing
to show up at a residential placement, clinic, or doctor's
appointment."
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4)Prior Legislation : SB 153 (Liu), of the 2009-10 Legislative
Session, would have provided that the sheriff shall discharge
a prisoner upon the completion of his or her sentence between
the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., with certain exceptions. SB
153 died in the Senate Committee on Public Safety.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Los Angeles County Sheriff's (Sponsor)
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
California Catholic Conference
California Probation, Parole and Correction Association
California Psychiatric Association
California Public Defenders Association
California State Sheriffs' Association
Chief Probation Officers of California
Golden State Bail Agents Association
National Alliance on Mental Illness
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) California
NAMI Solano County
National Association of Social Workers - California Chapter
Taxpayers for Improving Public Safety
Urban Counties Caucus
Women's Foundation of California
One private individual
Opposition
None
Analysis Prepared by : Stella Choe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744