Bill Text: CA SB1209 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Sentencing: members of military: trauma.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-09-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 721, Statutes of 2022. [SB1209 Detail]
Download: California-2021-SB1209-Amended.html
Bill Title: Sentencing: members of military: trauma.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-09-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 721, Statutes of 2022. [SB1209 Detail]
Download: California-2021-SB1209-Amended.html
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Amended
IN
Senate
April 25, 2022 |
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Amended
IN
Senate
March 15, 2022 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 1209
| Introduced by Senators Eggman and Min |
February 17, 2022 |
An act to amend Section 1170.91 of the Penal Code, relating to sentencing.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1209, as amended, Eggman.
Sentencing: members of military: trauma.
Existing law requires a court, if it concludes that a defendant convicted of a felony offense is or was a member of the United States military who may be suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental health problems as a result of the defendant’s military service, to consider that circumstance as a factor in mitigation when imposing a sentence. Existing law allows a defendant who is currently serving a felony sentence and meets these criteria to petition for resentencing if those criteria were not considered at the time of sentencing and the person was sentenced prior to January 1, 2015.
This bill would allow a defendant meeting these criteria to petition for recall of sentence and resentencing, as specified, without regard to whether the defendant was sentenced prior to
January 1, 2015. The bill would clarify that this relief is available whether or not there was argument or evidence made or presented about the defendant’s condition during arraignment or any pretrial proceedings, at trial, or at sentencing. The bill would also exclude from resentencing special consideration and from resentencing, any person convicted of of, or having a prior conviction for, certain violent and sexual offenses.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 1170.91 of the Penal Code is amended to read:1170.91.
(a) If the court concludes that a defendant convicted of a felony offense is, or was, a member of the United States military who may be suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental health problems as a result of the defendant’s military service, the court shall consider the circumstance as a factor in mitigation when imposing a sentence. This consideration does not preclude the court from considering similar trauma, injury, substance abuse, or mental health problems due to other causes, as evidence or factors in mitigation.(b) (1) A person currently serving a sentence for a felony conviction,
whether by trial or plea, who is, or was, a member of the United States military and who may be suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental health problems as a result of the person’s military service may petition for a recall of sentence, before the trial court that entered the judgment of conviction in the case, to request resentencing if the circumstance of suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental health problems as a result of the person’s military service was not considered as a factor in mitigation at the time of sentencing, whether or not there was argument or evidence made or presented about the defendant’s condition during arraignment or any pretrial proceedings, at trial, or at sentencing.
(2) If the court that originally sentenced the person is not available, the presiding judge shall designate another judge to rule on the petition.
(3) Upon receiving a petition under this subdivision, the court shall determine, at a public hearing held after not less than 15 days’ notice to the prosecution, the defense, and any victim of the offense, whether the person satisfies the criteria in this subdivision. At that hearing, the prosecution shall have an opportunity to be heard on the petitioner’s eligibility and suitability for resentencing. If the person satisfies the criteria, the court may, in its discretion, resentence the person following a resentencing hearing in either of the following manners:
(A) By modifying the defendant’s sentence to reduce the term of
imprisonment.
(B) By vacating the conviction and imposing judgment on any necessarily included lesser offense or lesser related offenses, whether or not those offenses were charged in the original pleading, and then resentencing the defendant to a reduced term of imprisonment with the concurrence of both the defendant and the prosecutor.
(4) A person who is resentenced pursuant to this subdivision shall be given credit for time served.
(5) Resentencing under this subdivision shall not result in the imposition of a term longer than the original sentence.
(6) This subdivision does not alter or diminish any rights conferred under Section 28 of Article
I of the California Constitution (Marsy’s Law).
(7) This subdivision does not diminish or abrogate any rights or remedies otherwise available to the person.
(8) This subdivision does not diminish or abrogate the finality of judgments in any case not falling within the purview of this subdivision.
(9) This subdivision does not impose an obligation on the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to provide medical or mental health assessments in order to identify potential service-related injuries.
(10)This subdivision does not apply to a person who has one or more prior convictions for an offense specified in clause (iv) of subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (e) of Section 667 or for an offense requiring registration pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 290.
(11)
(10) This subdivision shall apply retroactively.
(c) This section does not apply to a person convicted of, or having one or more prior convictions for, an offense specified in clause (iv) of subparagraph (C) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (e) of Section 667 or an offense requiring registration pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 290.
