BILL ANALYSIS
SB 218
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 218 (Solis)
As Amended August 19, 1999
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :26-5
PUBLIC SAFETY 6-0 APPROPRIATIONS 16-3
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|Ayes:|Honda, Cunneen, Cedillo, |Ayes:|Migden, Cedillo, Davis, |
| |Keeley, Romero, | |Hertzberg, Kuehl, |
| |Washington | |Maldonado, Papan, Romero, |
| | | |Shelley, Steinberg, |
| | | |Thomson, Wesson, Wiggins, |
| | | |Wright, Zettel, Aroner |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | |Nays:|Ackerman, Campbell, |
| | | |Runner |
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SUMMARY : Makes several changes in domestic violence law,
including requiring, rather than authorizing, courts to seize
firearms from persons subject to domestic violence protective
orders. Changes existing statutes with regard to mandatory
minimum jail terms for repeat offenders. Makes additional
changes relating to domestic violence death review teams,
unofficial translations of court orders and other miscellaneous
provisions. Specifically, this bill :
1)Permits courts to issue unofficial translations of orders or
documents issued pursuant to the Domestic Violence Prevention
Act, and directs the Judicial Council to prepare forms that
relate to domestic violence prevention in languages other than
English.
2)Requires batterer's treatment programs to be approved by the
probation department.
3)Makes the following changes to conform state law to federal
law regarding ownership or possession of firearms when subject
to a domestic violence protective order (DVPO):
a) Enacts an automatic prohibition from owning or
possessing a firearm by deleting the requirement of a
separate court order;
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b) Limits judicial discretion to order either a shorter or
longer period of time to relinquish a firearm than the
current requirement of 72 hours;
c) Limits judicial discretion to modify an order requiring
that a person subject to a DVPO relinquish all firearms for
the duration of the order or orders;
d) Clarifies existing law prohibiting owning or possessing
a firearm while a DVPO is in effect to include purchasing
or receiving; and,
e) Clarifies existing law by consolidating the respective
penalties for either purchasing or receiving or owning or
possessing a firearm while subject to a DVPO in one
statutory provision.
4)Removes the sunset on the advisory council to the Department
of Health Services, Maternal and Child Health Branch's grant
program to fund domestic violence shelters and services for
victims of domestic violence.
5)Requires an officer to make an arrest, with or without a
warrant, when responding to a call alleging a violation of a
DVPO, whether or not the violation occurred in the presence of
the officer. Requires law enforcement to seize a firearm or
other deadly weapon.
6)Allows the court to appoint a guardian ad litem to receive
service of a subpoena on a minor.
7)Allows members of a county interagency domestic violence death
review team to share confidential or privileged information,
or information that is prohibited from disclosure by statute,
regarding the victim, with other appointed members.
Establishes uniform reporting criteria for domestic violence
death review teams.
8)Increases mandatory minimum jail terms for certain repeat
offenders who are granted probation by deleting existing
penalties in favor of other penalty provisions. This bill
retains current imprisonment terms, but changes minimum jail
sentences.
9)Expands contempt of court punishable as a misdemeanor to
include willful disobedience of out-of-state court orders
related to domestic violence.
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10)Defines "contempt of court" as knowingly owning, possessing,
purchasing, or receiving a firearm in violation of a
protective order and provides for punishment consistent with
existing provisions.
11)Requires the Judicial Council to provide notice on all
protective orders that a person is prohibited from owning or
possessing a firearm.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee analysis:
1)Unknown, probably minor costs for additional state prison
commitments.
2)Minor reimbursable local costs to probation departments to
approve batterer's treatment programs.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "Although domestic violence
is no longer seen as a taboo in our society, it continues to be
a prevalent problem that plagues the lives of millions of women
every year. By the most conservative of estimates, each year
one million women suffer nonfatal violence by an intimate and
nearly one in three women experience at least one physical
assault by a partner during adulthood. Domestic violence is the
second leading cause of injury to women of all ages and it is
the leading cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 and
44. SB 218 seeks to help protect women from the unnecessary and
inexcusable injury and death produced by domestic violence. The
bill will strengthen a number of current California laws
including requiring the mandatory removal of all guns found at
the scene of a domestic violence incident, the mandatory arrest
of restraining order violators, and the prohibition of a
restrained person from owning or possessing a firearm.
Likewise, the bill will allow for the full enforcement of
out-of-state restraining orders and will allow restraining
orders to be translated in other languages."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a more
comprehensive discussion of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Bruce Chan / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0002688