Bill Text: CA AB1029 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: California Victim Compensation Board.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2020-02-03 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB1029 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB1029-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  March 28, 2019

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1029

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Introduced by Assembly Member Members Eduardo Garcia and Blanca Rubio
(Coauthor: Senator Rubio)

February 21, 2019

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An act to amend Section 51934 of the Education Code, and to amend Section 13519 of, and to add Section 803.7 to, the Penal Code, relating to public safety. domestic violence.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1029, as amended, Eduardo Garcia. Public safety. Domestic violence.

Existing law requires each school district to ensure that all pupils in grades 7 to 12, inclusive, receive comprehensive sexual health education and HIV prevention education from instructors trained in the appropriate courses, at least once in junior high or middle school and at least once in high school, including information about adolescent relationship abuse and intimate partner violence.

This bill would require the information regarding relationship abuse and intimate partner violence to include recognizing and preventing domestic violence and coercive control and recognizing and understanding consent in romantic relationships. By imposing a higher level of service on school districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law prescribes various statutes of limitations for criminal acts, ranging from a requirement that prosecution commence within one year after commission of the offense to provisions authorizing prosecution to be commenced at any time for offenses punishable by death or imprisonment in the state prison for life.

This bill would authorize prosecution for a crime involving domestic violence, as defined, to be commenced at any time under certain circumstances, including if the state newly discovers DNA evidence that is sufficient to charge the perpetrator and if the perpetrator confesses to the offense. The bill would apply to crimes that are committed on or after January 1, 2020, and to crimes for which the statute of limitations that was in effect prior to January 1, 2020, has not run as of January 1, 2020. By extending the statute of limitations indefinitely, under certain circumstances, for a crime involving domestic violence, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law requires the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training to implement a training course for law enforcement officers in the handling of domestic violence complaints and to develop guidelines for officer response to domestic violence. Existing law requires the course to include instruction on specified procedures and techniques for responding to domestic violence, including techniques for handling incidents of domestic violence that minimize the likelihood of injury to the officer and that promote the safety of the victim, and the assessment of lethality or signs of lethal violence in domestic violence situations. Existing law also requires the course of instruction, the learning and performance objectives, the standards for the training, and the guidelines to be developed by the commission in consultation with appropriate groups and individuals having an interest and expertise in the field of domestic violence, including 2 domestic violence experts.

This bill would require those techniques for handling domestic violence to include methods for ensuring victim interviews occur in a venue separate from the alleged perpetrator, deescalation techniques, and specified questions for victims. The bill would require the course of training to include the assessment of coercive control that may lead to lethal violence in domestic violence situations. The bill would also expand the groups and individuals with whom the commission is required to consult to include one representative of an organization working to advance criminal justice reform and one representative of an organization working to advance racial justice.

The bill would also delete obsolete provisions and make other technical changes.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law generally provides for public safety by, among other things, making specified actions a criminal offense punishable by a fine or imprisonment, providing for the enforcement of those laws by law enforcement, and establishing state prisons and county jails for the imprisonment of certain criminal offenders.

This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to ensure public safety.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NOYES  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the Phoenix Act.

SEC. 2.

 Section 51934 of the Education Code is amended to read:

51934.

 (a) Each school district shall ensure that all pupils in grades 7 to 12, inclusive, receive comprehensive sexual health education and HIV prevention education from instructors trained in the appropriate courses. Each pupil shall receive this instruction at least once in junior high or middle school and at least once in high school. This instruction shall include all of the following:

(1) Information on the nature of HIV, as well as other sexually transmitted infections, and their effects on the human body.

(2) Information on the manner in which HIV and other sexually transmitted infections are and are not transmitted, including information on the relative risk of infection according to specific behaviors, including sexual activities and injection drug use.

(3) Information that abstinence from sexual activity and injection drug use is the only certain way to prevent HIV and other sexually transmitted infections and abstinence from sexual intercourse is the only certain way to prevent unintended pregnancy. This instruction shall provide information about the value of delaying sexual activity while also providing medically accurate information on other methods of preventing HIV and other sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy.

(4) Information about the effectiveness and safety of all federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved methods that prevent or reduce the risk of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, including use of antiretroviral medication, consistent with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

(5) Information about the effectiveness and safety of reducing the risk of HIV transmission as a result of injection drug use by decreasing needle use and needle sharing.

(6) Information about the treatment of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, including how antiretroviral therapy can dramatically prolong the lives of many people living with HIV and reduce the likelihood of transmitting HIV to others.

(7) Discussion about social views on HIV and AIDS, including addressing unfounded stereotypes and myths regarding HIV and AIDS and people living with HIV. This instruction shall emphasize that successfully treated HIV-positive individuals have a normal life expectancy, all people are at some risk of contracting HIV, and the only way to know if one is HIV-positive is to get tested.

(8) Information about local resources, how to access local resources, and pupils’ legal rights to access local resources for sexual and reproductive health care such as testing and medical care for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy prevention and care, as well as local resources for assistance with sexual assault and intimate partner violence.

(9) Information about the effectiveness and safety of all FDA-approved contraceptive methods in preventing pregnancy, including, but not limited to, emergency contraception. Instruction on pregnancy shall include an objective discussion of all legally available pregnancy outcomes, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(A) Parenting, adoption, and abortion.

(B) Information on the law on surrendering physical custody of a minor child 72 hours of age or younger, pursuant to Section 1255.7 of the Health and Safety Code and Section 271.5 of the Penal Code.

(C) The importance of prenatal care.

(10) Information about sexual harassment, sexual assault, sexual abuse, and human trafficking. Information on human trafficking shall include both of the following:

(A) Information on the prevalence, nature, and strategies to reduce the risk of human trafficking, techniques to set healthy boundaries, and how to safely seek assistance.

(B) Information on how social media and mobile device applications are used for human trafficking.

(11) Information about adolescent relationship abuse and intimate partner violence, including the early warning signs thereof. Information regarding relationship abuse and intimate partner violence shall include all of the following:

(A) Recognizing and preventing domestic violence.

(B) Recognizing and preventing coercive control.

(C) Recognizing and understanding consent in romantic relationships.

(b) A school district may provide optional instruction, as part of comprehensive sexual health education and HIV prevention education, regarding the potential risks and consequences of creating and sharing sexually suggestive or sexually explicit materials through cellular telephones, social networking Internet Web sites, internet websites, computer networks, or other digital media.

(c) A school district may provide comprehensive sexual health education or HIV prevention education consisting of age-appropriate instruction earlier than grade 7 using instructors trained in the appropriate courses. A school district that elects to offer comprehensive sexual health education or HIV prevention education earlier than grade 7 may provide age appropriate and medically accurate information on any of the general topics contained in paragraphs (1) to (11), inclusive, of subdivision (a).

SEC. 3.

 Section 803.7 is added to the Penal Code, to read:

803.7.

 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, prosecution for a crime involving domestic violence, as defined in Section 13700, may be commenced at any time if one of the following criteria applies:

(1) The state discovers DNA evidence that is sufficient to charge the perpetrator.

(2) The state becomes aware of an audio or video recording, photographs, or written or electronic communication that provides evidence sufficient to charge the perpetrator.

(3) The perpetrator confesses to the offense.

(4) The judge finds by clear and convincing evidence that the perpetrator threatened the victim with a crime that would have caused the death or great bodily injury to the alleged victim, or to another person, by exercising coercive control so that the alleged victim would not report the offense to the state prior to the passage of the statute of limitations.

(5) A licensed mental health professional determines that the victim was incapable of identifying the crime for the duration of the statute of limitations.

(6) Three or more victims present evidence to the state of domestic violence by the same perpetrator or perpetrators in separate events, the last of which occurred after the applicable statute of limitations had elapsed.

(b) This section applies to crimes that are committed on or after January 1, 2020, and to crimes for which the statute of limitations that was in effect prior to January 1, 2020, has not run as of January 1, 2020.

SEC. 4.

 Section 13519 of the Penal Code is amended to read:

13519.

 (a) The commission shall implement by January 1, 1986, a course or courses of instruction for the training of law enforcement officers in California in the handling of domestic violence complaints and also shall develop guidelines for law enforcement response to domestic violence. The course or courses of instruction and the guidelines shall stress enforcement of criminal laws in domestic violence situations, availability of civil remedies and community resources, and protection of the victim. When If appropriate, the training presenters shall include domestic violence experts with expertise in the delivery of direct services to victims of domestic violence, including utilizing the staff of shelters for battered women in the presentation of training.

(b) As used in this section, “law enforcement officer” means any officer or employee of a local police department or sheriff’s office, any a peace officer of the Department of Parks and Recreation, as defined in subdivision (f) of Section 830.2, any a peace officer of the University of California Police Department, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 830.2, any a peace officer of the California State University Police Departments, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 830.2, a peace officer, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 830.31, or a peace officer as defined in subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 830.32.

(c) The course of basic training for law enforcement officers shall include adequate instruction in the procedures and techniques described below:

(1) The provisions set forth in Title 5 (commencing with Section 13700) relating to response, enforcement of court orders, and data collection.

(2) The legal duties imposed on peace officers to make arrests and offer protection and assistance including guidelines for making felony and misdemeanor arrests.

(3) Techniques for handling incidents of domestic violence that minimize the likelihood of injury to the officer and that promote the safety of the victim. These techniques shall include, but are not limited to, the following:

(A) Methods for ensuring victim interviews occur in a venue separate from the alleged perpetrator and with appropriate sound barriers to prevent eavesdropping.

(B) Deescalation techniques.

(C) Questions for the victim, including, but not limited to, the following:

(i) Whether the victim has a safe space to sleep that night, and whether the victim needs help to go to that location.

(ii) Whether the victim would like a followup visit to provide needed support or resources.

(iii) Information on obtaining a gun violence restraining order.

(4) The nature and extent of domestic violence.

(5) The signs of domestic violence.

(6) (A) The assessment of lethality or signs of lethal violence in domestic violence situations.

(B) The assessment of coercive control that may lead to lethal violence in domestic violence situations. For the purposes of this subparagraph, coercive control means that the domestic violence victim is the victim of any of the following criminal conduct:

(i) “Coercion,” as described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (h) of Section 236.1, for purposes of committing or impeding the investigation or prosecution of domestic violence.

(ii) False imprisonment, as defined in Section 236.

(iii) Extortion, as defined in Section 518, and the use of fear, as described in Section 519.

(iv) Identify theft, as defined in Section 530.5, impersonation through an internet website or by other electronic means, as defined in Section 528.5, false personation, as defined in Section 530, receiving money or property as a result of false personation, and mail theft.

(v) Stalking, as defined in Section 646.9, including by telephone or electronic communication.

(vi) Revenge porn, as described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (j) of Section 647.

(7) The legal rights of, and remedies available to, victims of domestic violence.

(8) The use of an arrest by a private person in a domestic violence situation.

(9) Documentation, report writing, and evidence collection.

(10) Domestic violence diversion as provided in Chapter 2.6 (commencing with Section 1000.6) of Title 6 of Part 2. diversion.

(11) Tenancy issues and domestic violence.

(12) The impact on children of law enforcement intervention in domestic violence.

(13) The services and facilities available to victims and batterers.

(14) The use and applications of this code in domestic violence situations.

(15) Verification and enforcement of temporary restraining orders when (A) the suspect is present and (B) the suspect has fled.

(16) Verification and enforcement of stay-away orders.

(17) Cite and release policies.

(18) Emergency assistance to victims and how to assist victims in pursuing criminal justice options.

(d) The guidelines developed by the commission shall also incorporate the foregoing factors. factors described in subdivision (c).

(e)(1)All law enforcement officers who have received their basic training before January 1, 1986, shall participate in supplementary training on domestic violence subjects, as prescribed and certified by the commission.

(2)Except as provided in paragraph (3), the training specified in paragraph (1) shall be completed no later than January 1, 1989.

(3)(A)The training for peace officers of the Department of Parks and Recreation, as defined in subdivision (g) of Section 830.2, shall be completed no later than January 1, 1992.

(B)The training for peace officers of the University of California Police Department and the California State University Police Departments, as defined in Section 830.2, shall be completed no later than January 1, 1993.

(C)The training for peace officers employed by a housing authority, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 830.31, shall be completed no later than January 1, 1995.

(4)

(e) Local law enforcement agencies are encouraged to include, as a part of their advanced officer training program, periodic updates and training on domestic violence. The commission shall assist where possible.

(f) (1) The course of instruction, the learning and performance objectives, the standards for the training, and the guidelines shall be developed by the commission in consultation with appropriate groups and individuals having an interest and expertise in the field of domestic violence. The groups and individuals shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following: one representative each from the California Peace Officers’ Association, the Peace Officers’ Research Association of California, the State Bar of California, the California Women Lawyers’ Association, and the State Commission on the Status of Women and Girls; two representatives from the commission; two representatives from the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence; two peace officers, recommended by the commission, who are experienced in the provision of domestic violence training; and two domestic violence experts, recommended by the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence, who are experienced in the provision of direct services to victims of domestic violence violence; and at least one representative of service providers serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community in connection with domestic violence. At least one of the persons selected shall be a former victim of domestic violence. violence; one representative of an organization working to advance criminal justice reform; and one representative of an organization working to advance racial justice.

(2) The commission, in consultation with these groups and individuals, shall review existing training programs to determine in what ways domestic violence training might be included as a part of ongoing programs.

(g) Each law enforcement officer below the rank of supervisor who is assigned to patrol duties and would normally respond to domestic violence calls or incidents of domestic violence shall complete, every two years, an updated course of instruction on domestic violence that is developed according to the standards and guidelines developed pursuant to subdivision subdivisions (a) and (d). The instruction required pursuant to this subdivision shall be funded from existing resources available for the training required pursuant to this section. It is the intent of the Legislature not to increase the annual training costs of local government entities.

SEC. 5.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for certain costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district because, in that regard, this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.

However, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

SECTION 1.

(a)The Legislature finds and declares that public safety is essential for our communities.

(b)It is therefore the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to ensure public safety.