Today's Law As Amended


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AB-814 Rape: withdrawal of consent.(2003-2004)



As Amends the Law Today


Section 261.6 of the Penal Code is amended to read:

261.6.
 (a) In prosecutions under Section 261, 262,  286, 287, 288a,  or 289, or former Section 262 or 288a,  in which consent is at issue, “consent” means  shall be defined to mean  positive cooperation in act or attitude pursuant to an exercise of free will. The person must act freely and voluntarily and have knowledge of the nature of the act or transaction involved.
(b) A current or previous dating or marital relationship is shall  not be  sufficient to constitute consent if where  consent is at issue in a prosecution under Section 261, 262,  286, 287, or 289, or former Section 262 or 288a. 288a, or 289. 
(c) Consent, as defined in subdivision (a), may be withdrawn at any point before or during the sexual contact by communicating that withdrawal. A withdrawal of consent terminates any earlier consent. In a prosecution under Section 261, 262, 286, 288a, or 289, it is immaterial at what point the consent was withdrawn so long as the withdrawal of consent was communicated.
(c) (d)  This  Nothing in this  section shall not  affect the admissibility of evidence or the burden of proof on the issue of consent.
SEC. 2.
 It is the intent of the Legislature that the amendments to Section 261.6 made by this act abrogate the decision in People v. Vela (1985) 172 Cal.App.3d 237. It is also the intent of the Legislature that these amendments codify the opinion of the California Supreme Court in In re John Z. (2003) 29 Cal.4th 756, and establish an objective, totality-of-the-circumstances test for determining if consent was given or withdrawn.