BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de Le�n, Chair
SB 1412 (Nielsen) - Criminal proceedings: mentally incompetent
offenders.
Amended: May 7, 2014 Policy Vote: Public Safety 6-0
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: May 19, 2014 Consultant: Jolie Onodera
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill Summary: SB 1412 would provide that when a person facing
revocation of probation, mandatory supervision, postrelease
community supervision (PRCS), or parole may be mentally
incompetent, as specified, existing laws and procedures in place
for persons incompetent to stand trial (IST) shall apply.
Fiscal Impact:
Potentially significant ongoing costs (General Fund*) to
hold additional court hearings to determine competency and
review progress reports of defendants pending revocation
proceedings, as specified.
Potential increase in defendants found eligible for IST
commitment to the Department of State Hospitals (DSH). While
the annual cost to treat and house a DSH patient ranges from
$180,000 to $220,000, the DSH currently has a backlog of 300
IST patients awaiting commitment in county jails. To the
extent DSH is able to treat persons in county jail treatment
facilities and reimburse local jails for bed space, costs
would be significantly less per patient.
Potentially significant costs (General Fund) to the
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to the
extent specified alleged parole violators are found IST and
must be remanded to state prison for future parole
consideration by the Board of Parole Hearings (BPH).
Potentially significant non-reimbursable costs to local
agencies pursuant to court orders, including county
sheriffs, county mental health directors, and public
guardians.
Unknown potential future cost savings (Local/General Fund)
to the extent defendants are successfully treated and avert
revocation proceedings and re-incarceration.
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*Trial Court Trust Fund
Background: Existing law prohibits a person from being tried or
adjudged to punishment while that person is mentally
incompetent, meaning the person is unable to understand the
nature of the criminal proceedings or assist counsel in the
conduct of a defense in a rational manner. (Penal Code (PC) �
1367)
If found mentally incompetent in a court or jury trial, the
defendant is committed to a state hospital for care and
treatment, or to any other available public or private treatment
facility, including a local county jail treatment facility, or
placed on outpatient status, as specified. (PC � 1370)
Previously, individuals deemed by the court to be mentally IST
waited in county jails pending transfer to a state hospital for
evaluation and treatment to be restored to competency. However,
the lack of physical space at state hospitals to house ISTs
coupled with difficulty in staffing key personnel at state
hospitals resulted in an extensive backlog of IST commitments in
county jails and extended wait times pending transfer to a state
hospital.
Pursuant to the Budget Act of 2007, the DSH received a $4.3
million appropriation from the Legislature to begin pilot
programs to examine alternative approaches to addressing the IST
waitlist. After several years, a pilot program was initiated in
San Bernardino County to treat ISTs in the county jail instead
of at a state hospital. In its January 2012 report, An
Alternative Approach: Treating the Incompetent to Stand Trial,
the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) indicated promising
results, "Specifically, we find the pilot program provides less
incentive for potential malingerers, has greater flexibility to
hold down costs, and is able to restore ISTs to competency in a
shorter amount of time than the state hospitals." In its
recommendations to the Legislature, the LAO indicated to further
reduce the IST waitlist, expansion of the pilot into counties
with historically long waitlists should be considered, and
specifically noted the counties of Los Angeles, Kern, and San
Diego as prime candidates.
AB 1470 (Committee on Budget) Chapter 24/2012, the 2012 budget
trailer bill on mental health, included a number of provisions
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concerning treatment of IST defendants in county jail treatment
facilities and authorized a county mental health program
director to determine whether an IST defendant should be treated
in jail, providing that if a local county jail treatment
facility is selected, the DSH must provide treatment at the
county jail treatment facility and reimburse the county jail
treatment facility for the reasonable costs of the bed during
the treatment.
The May Revision of the 2014-15 Governor's Budget includes $3.9
million General Fund and 13.5 positions to expand the
Restoration of Competency Program by up to 55 beds. This program
provides for treatment of IST patients in county jails rather
than inpatient treatment at a state hospital.
This bill seeks to apply the existing processes and procedures
in place for offenders prior to being tried or adjudged to those
offenders pending revocation proceedings.
Proposed Law: This bill would provide that when a person facing
revocation of probation, mandatory supervision, PRCS, or parole
may be mentally incompetent, as specified, existing laws and
procedures in place for persons incompetent to stand trial (IST)
must apply. Specifically, this bill:
Provides that a person cannot have his or her probation,
mandatory supervision, PRCS, or parole revoked while that
person is mentally incompetent, as specified.
Authorizes competency hearings if, during revocation
proceedings for violations of probation, mandatory
supervision, PRCS, or parole, a doubt arises in a judge's
mind as to the mental competency of the defendant.
Provides that only a court trial is required to
determine competency in any proceeding for a violation of
supervision.
Provides that the provision of antipsychotic medications
to persons in county jail pending revocation of PRCS not
exceed one year, and for persons pending revocation of
mandatory supervision, shall not exceed the remaining
period of mandatory supervision, as specified.
Suspends hearings on alleged violations of supervision
if a defendant is found IST, until the person becomes
mentally competent.
For proceedings alleging a violation of mandatory
supervision, if person not found gravely disabled, as
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specified, court shall reinstate supervision and may modify
terms and conditions of supervision to include mental
health treatment, mental health courts, reentry courts, or
other collaborative justice courts available for improving
mental health of the defendant.
Specifies that formal resumption of a revocation hearing
for PRCS or parole must occur within a reasonable time, and
in no event may the defendant be detained in custody for
over 180 days from arrest.
Accelerates the timeline required for written progress
reports due to the courts for defendants pending revocation
of PRCS or parole who are found IST.
For proceedings alleging a violation of PRCS or parole,
if person not restored to competency within 180 days, court
shall reinstate supervision and may modify terms and
conditions of supervision to include mental health
treatment, mental health courts, reentry courts, or other
collaborative justice courts available for improving mental
health of the defendant.
Provides that notwithstanding any other law, if a person
subject to parole pursuant to Section 3000.1 or paragraph
(4) of subdivision (b) of Section 3000 is found IST, the
court, upon a finding of probable cause that the person
violated a term or condition of parole, shall remand the
person to the custody of the CDCR and the jurisdiction of
the Board of Parole Hearings for the purpose of future
parole consideration
If a defendant is found IST and is developmentally
disabled, in the event of dismissal of revocation
proceedings before the defendant recovers competence, the
defendant may be transferred to a Department of
Developmental Services (DDS) facility.
Provides that time spent by a defendant in a hospital or
other facility as a result of a commitment as mentally
incompetent, shall be credited toward any period of
revocation or remaining term of supervision that was
suspended.
Makes other conforming changes to various statutes.
Prior Legislation: AB 366 (Allen) Chapter 654/2011 modifies the
process by which individuals that are declared IST can be
involuntarily medicated.
SB 1794 (Perata) Chapter 486/2004 established the standards for
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the administration of antipsychotic medication to persons found
IST.
Staff Comments: By extending the process of identifying and
treating defendants found to be IST to a larger population of
defendants, the provisions of this bill could result in
potentially significant ongoing costs (General Fund) to hold
additional court hearings to determine competency and review
progress reports of defendants pending revocation proceedings,
as specified.
The provisions of this bill could increase commitments eligible
for treatment at a DSH facility for defendants found mentally
incompetent. The annual cost to treat and house a defendant in a
DSH facility ranges from $180,000 to $220,000. Costs
notwithstanding, DSH indicates a current backlog of over 300 IST
defendants who have been committed to a state hospital but are
awaiting admission in county jails, as the DSH does not have the
capacity to take on new IST admissions at this time.
Alternatively, to the extent the DSH treats persons in county
jail treatment facilities, which would require reimbursement to
local jails for bed space, these costs could be significantly
less. Staff notes the May Revision of the 2014-15 Governor's
Budget includes $3.9 million General Fund to expand the
Restoration of Competency Program by up to 55 beds. This program
provides for treatment of IST patients in county jails rather
than inpatient treatment at a state hospital.
This bill could potentially result in an unknown but likely
small number of defendants convicted of serious crimes and
alleged to have violated parole to be remanded to the custody of
CDCR should they be found IST under the provisions of this bill.
Existing law provides that no person shall be returned to state
prison on a parole revocation except for those life-term
offenders who paroled pursuant to PC � 3000.1 (PC � 3056). This
bill would not only require life-term offenders to be remanded
to state prison upon IST determination, but also registered sex
offenders convicted of crimes against victims younger than 14
years of age. Additionally, because the bill remands the parolee
to the jurisdiction of the BPH for future parole consideration,
the term of re-incarceration would be indeterminate. Potential
state costs for increased prison commitments are unknown, but
could be significant.
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This bill could significantly increase ongoing costs to local
agencies resulting from court orders to transfer defendants to
state hospitals or other treatment facilities, provide
assessments and written evaluations, in some cases within a
shorter timeframe, on defendants, provide for county jail bed
space, and initiate county conservatorship proceedings, if
necessary.
To the extent defendants are successfully treated and avert
revocation proceedings and re-incarceration, the provisions of
this bill could result in an unknown level of potential future
cost savings to the state and counties.
Recommended Amendments: To reduce potential state costs and for
consistency with existing law pursuant to 2011 Realignment,
staff recommends an amendment to delete the reference to
convicted sex offender parolees from the population of parolees
that could potentially be remanded to CDCR custody upon IST
determination:
Section 1370.02, as added to the Penal Code:
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, if a person subject to parole
pursuant to Section 3000.1 or paragraph (4) of subdivision (b)
of Section 3000 is found mentally incompetent, the court, upon a
finding of probable cause that the person violated a term or
condition of parole, shall remand the person to the custody of
the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the
jurisdiction of the Board of Parole Hearings for the purpose of
future parole consideration. If the court finds no probable
cause to believe that the person violated a term or condition of
parole, the court may proceed under paragraph (2) or (3) of
subdivision (b), or both.
Staff also recommends the following technical amendment in
Section 9 of the bill:
(a) If the defendant on postrelease community supervision or
parole is found mentally competent, is found mentally competent
during a postrelease community supervision or parole revocation
hearing , the revocation proceedings shall resume. The formal
hearing on the revocation shall occur within a reasonable time
after resumption of the proceedings, but in no event may the
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defendant be detained in custody for over 180 days from the date
of arrest.