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AB-1432 Crimes.(2011-2012)

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Assembly Bill No. 1432
CHAPTER 805

An act to add Section 273j to the Penal Code, relating to crimes.

[ Approved by Governor  September 30, 2012. Filed with Secretary of State  September 30, 2012. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1432, Mitchell. Crimes.
Existing law makes it a crime for a parent or guardian of a minor child to willfully omit, without lawful excuse, clothing, food, shelter, or medical care for the child. Existing law also makes it a crime for a parent or guardian to desert a child under 14 years of age with the intent to abandon that child.
This bill would require a parent or guardian of a child under 14 years of age who knows or should have known that the child has died to notify a public safety agency, as defined, within 24 hours of the time that the parent or guardian knew or should have known that the child has died, and to notify law enforcement within 24 hours of the time that a parent or guardian knows or should have known that the child is a missing person and that there is evidence that the child is a person at risk, except as specified. The bill would make a violation of those provisions a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. The bill would also provide that these provisions shall not preclude prosecution under any other provision of law. By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

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


SECTION 1.

 This act shall be known as Caylee’s Law.

SEC. 2.

 Section 273j is added to the Penal Code, to read:

273j.
 (a) (1) Any parent or guardian having the care, custody, or control of a child under 14 years of age who knows or should have known that the child has died shall notify a public safety agency, as defined in Section 53102 of the Government Code, within 24 hours of the time that the parent or guardian knew or should have known that the child has died.
(2) This subdivision shall not apply when a child is otherwise under the immediate care of a physician at the time of death, or if a public safety agency, a coroner, or a medical examiner is otherwise aware of the death.
(b) (1) Any parent or guardian having the care, custody, or control of a child under 14 years of age shall notify law enforcement within 24 hours of the time that the parent or guardian knows or should have known that the child is a missing person and there is evidence that the child is a person at risk, as those terms are defined in Section 14213.
(2) This subdivision shall not apply if law enforcement is otherwise aware that the child is a missing person.
(c) A violation of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(d) Nothing in this section shall preclude prosecution under any other provision of law.

SEC. 3.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because 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.