BILL NUMBER: AB 1718	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE   JUNE 20, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   MARCH 28, 2000

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Hertzberg
   (Principal coauthor:  Assembly Member Keeley)
   (Coauthors:  Assembly Members Aroner, Bock, Davis, Kuehl,
Longville, Machado, Maddox, Mazzoni, Steinberg, Strom-Martin, and
Washington)
   (Coauthor:  Senator Perata)

                        JANUARY 3, 2000

   An act to add Section 13515.25 to the Penal Code, relating to
peace officers.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1718, as amended, Hertzberg.  Peace officers:  advanced
training: mental illness.
   Existing law requires specified categories of law enforcement
officers to meet training standards pursuant to courses of training
certified by the Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST)
program, including a basic training course for law enforcement
officers containing an adequate instruction in the handling of
persons with developmental disabilities or mental illness, or both,
as specified.
   This bill would require that, on or before June 30, 2001, POST
establish and keep updated a continuing education classroom training
course relating to law enforcement intervention with developmentally
disabled and mentally ill persons and that the course be developed in
consultation with specified groups and entities.
   Vote:  majority.  Appropriation:  no.  Fiscal committee:  yes.
State-mandated local program:  no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 13515.25 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
   13515.25.  (a) The Commission on Peace Officer Standards and
Training shall, on or before June 30, 2001, establish and keep
updated a continuing education classroom training course relating to
law enforcement interaction with developmentally disabled and
mentally ill persons.  The training course shall be developed by the
commission in consultation with appropriate community, local 
and state organizations,   , and state organizations
 and agencies that have expertise in the area of mental illness
and developmental disability  ,  and with appropriate
consumer and family advocate groups.  In developing the course, the
commission shall also examine existing courses certified by the
commission that relate to mentally ill and developmentally disabled
persons.  The commission shall make the course available to law
enforcement agencies in California.
   (b) The course described in subdivision (a) shall consist of
classroom instruction and shall utilize  role-playing and the
development of scenarios to simulate actual situations 
 interactive training methods to ensure that the training is as
realistic as possible  .  The course shall include, at a
minimum, core instruction in all of the following:
   (1) The cause and nature of mental illnesses and developmental
disabilities.
   (2) How to identify indicators of mental illness and developmental
disability and how to respond appropriately in a variety of common
situations.
   (3) Conflict resolution and de-escalation techniques for
potentially dangerous situations involving mentally ill and
developmentally disabled persons.
   (4) Appropriate language usage when interacting with mentally ill
and developmentally disabled persons.
   (5) Alternatives to lethal force when interacting with potentially
dangerous mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons.
   (6) Community and state resources available to serve mentally ill
and developmentally disabled persons and how these resources can be
best utilized by law enforcement to benefit the mentally ill and
developmentally disabled community.  
   (d)  
   (c)  The commission shall submit a report to the Legislature
by  July 1, 2002   October 1, 2003  , that
shall include all of the following:
   (1) A description of the process by which the course was
established, including a list of the agencies and groups that were
consulted.
   (2) Information on the number of law enforcement agencies that
utilized  ,  and the number of officers that attended  ,
 the course or other courses certified by the commission
relating to mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons from
July 1, 2001, to July 1,  2002   2003  ,
inclusive.
   (3) Information on the number of law enforcement agencies that
utilized  ,  and the number of officers that attended  ,
 courses certified by the commission relating to mentally ill
and developmentally disabled persons from July 1, 2000, to July 1,
2001, inclusive.  
   (e)  
   (d)  The Legislature encourages law enforcement agencies to
include the course created in this section  ,  or any other
course certified by the commission relating to mentally ill and
developmentally disabled persons  ,  as part of their
advanced officer training program.  
   (f)  
   (e)  It is the intent of the Legislature to reevaluate, on
the basis of its review of the report required in subdivision
 (d)   (c)  , the extent to which law
enforcement officers are receiving adequate training in how to
interact with mentally ill and developmentally disabled persons.