CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill No. 238

Introduced by Senator Hertzberg

February 06, 2017

An act to amend Section 1417.7 of the Penal Code, relating to evidence, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 238, as introduced, Hertzberg. Evidence: disposition of exhibits: photographic or digital record.
Existing law requires the retention of all exhibits which have been introduced or filed in any criminal action until the final determination of the action or proceedings, and provides for their disposal thereafter. Existing law allows any party to prepare a photographic record of an exhibit before it is disposed of. Existing law requires the clerk of the court to observe the taking of the photographic record and to certify the copy and negative of the photograph as being a true, unaltered, and unretouched print of the photographic record taken in the presence of the clerk.
This bill would allow, in addition to a photographic record, a digital record of the exhibit to be taken in the above manner. The bill would require a duplicate of the photographic or digital record to be delivered to the clerk for certification and would define “photographic” and “duplicate” for these purposes.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Vote: 2/3   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 1417.7 of the Penal Code is amended to read:

1417.7.
 Not less than 15 days before any proposed disposition of an exhibit pursuant to Section 1417.3, 1417.5, or 1417.6, the court shall notify the district attorney (or other prosecuting attorney), attorney or other prosecuting attorney, the attorney of record for each party, and each party who is not represented by counsel of the proposed disposition. Before the disposition, any party, at his or her own expense, may cause to be prepared a photographic or digital record of all or part of the exhibit by a person who is not a party or attorney of a party. The clerk of the court shall observe the taking of the photographic or digital record and, upon receipt of a declaration of the person making the photographic or digital record that the copy and negative of the photograph duplicate delivered to the clerk is a true, unaltered, and unretouched print duplicate of the photographic or digital record taken in the presence of the clerk, the clerk shall certify the photographic or digital record as such without charge and retain it unaltered for a period of 60 days following the final determination of the criminal action or proceeding. For purposes of this section, a “photographic record” of the exhibit means a photographic image of the exhibit or its equivalent stored in any form. For purposes of this section, a “duplicate” means a counterpart produced by a mechanical, photographic, chemical, electronic, or other equivalent process or technique that accurately reproduces the original. A certified photographic or digital record of exhibits shall not be deemed inadmissible pursuant to Section 1521 or 1522 of the Evidence Code.

SEC. 2.

 This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to allow for the preservation of exhibits by digital means at the earliest time possible, it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.