BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1110
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Date of Hearing: June 10, 2014
Counsel: Sandy Uribe
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
SB 1110 (Jackson) - As Amended: April 22, 2014
As Proposed to be Amended in Committee
SUMMARY : Requires the court to identify a defendant as an
active member or veteran of the military at arraignment.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires a magistrate to inquire about a defendant's current
or past military status if he or she is represented by
counsel.
2)Provides that a defendant may decline to provide the
information without penalty.
3)States that if the defendant acknowledges military service,
the Judicial Council form for notification of military status
shall be filed and served on defense counsel and the
prosecuting attorney for future reference related to the
provisions of Penal Code section 1170.9.
4)Requires that a copy of the Judicial Council form for
notification of military status be transmitted to the county
Veterans Services Officers for confirmation of military
service.
5)Prohibits the magistrate from inquiring about a defendant's
military status if he or she appears at arraignment without
counsel, but requires the court to advise the defendant that
certain current or former members of the military are eligible
for specific forms of restorative relief under the Penal Code.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that when a defendant is brought before the
magistrate upon an arrest, either with or without warrant, on
a charge of having committed a public offense, the magistrate
must immediately inform him of the charge against him and of
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his right to the aid of counsel in every stage of the
proceedings. (Pen. Code, � 858.)
2)Requires the court, in the case of a person convicted of a
criminal offense who would otherwise be sentenced to county
jail or state prison and who alleges that he or she committed
the offense as a result of post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD), substance abuse, or psychological problems stemming
from service in a combat theater in the United States
military, to determine whether the defendant was a member of
the military who served in combat and to assess whether the
defendant suffers from PTSD, substance abuse, or psychological
problems as a result of that service. (Pen. Code, � 1170.9,
subd. (a).)
3)States that if the court concludes that a defendant convicted
of a criminal offense was a member of the military suffering
from PTSD, substance abuse, or psychological problems stemming
from service in a combat theater and if the defendant is
otherwise eligible for probation and the court places the
defendant on probation, the court may order the defendant into
a local; state; federal; or private, non-profit treatment
program for a period not to exceed that which the defendant
would have served in state prison or county jail, provided the
defendant agrees to participate in the program and the court
determines that an appropriate treatment program exists.
(Pen. Code, � 1170.9, subd. (b).)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement : According to the author, "Penal code
1170.9 is a groundbreaking law designed to give our most
traumatized soldiers a chance to confront and overcome the
wounds of war. It directs courts to consider treatment rather
than incarceration when sentencing a defendant who serves or
who has served in the military.
"SB 1110 would identify the military and veterans status of
defendants at arraignment, the first stage in the court
process, so that those who are eligible may be considered for
treatment rather than incarceration under Penal Code 1170.9.
SB 1110 would save taxpayer money, prevent crime and
unnecessary incarceration, and ensure that defendants'
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underlying conditions are addressed."
2)Incarcerated Veterans in California : Data on the number of
incarcerated veterans is difficult to obtain. One of the
reasons is because, until recently, this information was
self-reported. However, the California Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has informed this
Committee that as of February 2014, CDCR can now verify prior
military service via a data exchange with the U.S. Department
of Veterans Affairs (USDVA). As of February 2014, there are
4,521 currently-incarcerated inmates at CDCR verified by the
USDVA as having prior military service.
After realignment, many convicted defendants are now serving
sentences in county jails rather than at CDCR. In August
2012, the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit discovered that many
counties do not track data on inmate veterans. "Reporters and
producers contacted law enforcement in every Bay Area county
and discovered that only Santa Clara and San Francisco
counties track the veterans in their jails."
(.) Of the information that was available, the
results showed that in Santa Clara County as many as 60
veterans a day have been incarcerated in the last year and a
half. And in San Francisco County, as many as 97 veterans a
day were incarcerated during the same time. (Ibid.)
The Website of the California Veterans Legal Task Force
provides some information about veteran defendants in San
Diego County: "San Diego County is home to the largest
concentration of military activity in the world, with 137,000
active duty military personnel, 250,000 veteran residents and
the largest discharged Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation
Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) veteran population in the
nation. About 38,000 veterans in the county have recent
combat service, the highest concentration of any county in the
U.S. and almost double the number residing in Los Angeles. Of
that number, VA Research indicates that approximately 11,550
will suffer a diagnosable mental condition related to their
service. Studies from the Bureau of Justice Administration
can be used to predict that almost 5,800 of them will be
incarcerated for criminal activity, 1,900 for felony crimes.
At present an average of 100 self-identified military veterans
are booked into San Diego County Jail each week."
(.)
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3)Argument in Support : The California Public Defenders
Association writes, "This bill would allow the court to
enquire of defendants if they are current or former members of
the U.S. military. If they acknowledge such status, they are
asked to fill out Judicial Council form MIL-100, copies of
which would then be provided to the county veteran services
officer and all counsel. This bill has the laudable goal of
alerting the prosecution, the defense, and the court that a
particular defendant might be eligible for certain forms of
rehabilitative relief specially designed for veterans, such as
those described in Penal Code section 1170.9. The concern
this bill addresses is the potential underutilization of
specified forms of relief available to veteran defendants that
occur simply because a defendant's current or former military
service is not identified, for whatever reason."
4)Related Legislation :
a) AB 2098 (Levine) requires the court to consider a
defendant's status as a veteran suffering from
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other forms of
trauma when making specified sentencing determinations. AB
2098 is pending hearing in the Senate Public Safety
Committee.
b) AB 2263 (Bradford) requires a parole agent to be
appointed as a veterans service officer at each facility
that is under the jurisdiction of the Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation. AB 2263 is pending
referral by the Senate Rules Committee.
c) AB 2357 (Skinner) requires CDCR to consider an inmate's
military service as part of their assessments used to place
an inmate in programs that will aid in his or her reentry
to society. AB 2357 is pending hearing in the Senate
Public Safety Committee.
d) SB 1227 (Hancock) authorizes pretrial diversion for
members of the military for specified offenses. SB 1227 is
pending hearing in this Committee.
5)Prior Legislation :
a) AB 2371 (Butler), Chapter 403, Statutes of 2012,
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provides restorative relief to a veteran defendant who
acquires a criminal record due to a mental disorder
stemming from military service.
b) AB 674 (Salas), Chapter 347, Statutes of 2010, allows a
court to order a defendant who suffers from sexual trauma,
traumatic brain injury, PTSD, substance abuse, or mental
health problems as a result of military service into a
treatment program or veteran's court for a period not to
exceed that which the defendant would have served in state
prison or jail.
c) AB 2586 (Parra), Chapter 788, Statutes of 2006, allows
the court to consider a treatment program, in lieu of
incarceration, as a condition of probation in cases
involving military veterans who suffer from PTSD, substance
abuse, or psychological problems stemming from their
military service.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Legion, Department of California
AMVETS, Department of California
California Association of County Veteran Service Officers
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
California Public Defenders Association
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Judicial Council
Military Officers Association of America, California Council of
Chapters
Taxpayers for Improving Public Safety
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of California
Vietnam Veterans of America, California State Council
Opposition
None
Analysis Prepared by : Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
SB 1110
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