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SB-1937 Juveniles: boot camps.(1999-2000)

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SB1937:v99#DOCUMENT


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 1999–2000 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 1937


Introduced  by  Senator Schiff
(Principal Coauthor(s): Assembly Member Machado)

February 24, 2000


An act to add Section 531 to the Military and Veterans Code, and to add Sections 731.3 and 731.4 to, and to add Article 20.5 (commencing with Section 790) to Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 2 of, the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to minors, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 1937, as introduced, Schiff. Juveniles: boot camps.
Existing law provides that a minor who is alleged to have committed a criminal offense is within the jurisdiction of the juvenile court.
Existing law also provides that a minor who commits specified acts while at school or a school activity off school grounds may be expelled from school.
This bill would enact the Zero Tolerance Offense Remediation Act. The bill would require commitment to the Department of the Youth Authority for minors who are 15 years of age or older and who are found to have committed any one of specified offenses while at school or during a school activity off school grounds, as specified.
However, the bill also would provide for an alternative commitment to a residential boot camp academy program that would be authorized to be established and operated by the Adjutant General. The bill would also establish a procedure for deferred entry of judgment in cases before the juvenile court for the commission of one of the above described offenses, where specified circumstances are found to apply, requiring participation in a residential boot camp academy program. Successful completion of the program would result in dismissal of charges and sealing of records. These provisions establishing the alternative commitment and deferred entry of judgment would be applicable only in counties in which the board of supervisors has adopted a resolution making these provisions applicable.
The 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 531 is added to the Military and Veterans Code, to read:

531.
 The Adjutant General may develop, establish, and operate residential and nonresidential boot camp academies and similar programs for minors residing in California, including, but not limited to, first time juvenile offenders. The boot camp academies shall consist of an intensive program of treatment, physical training, education, drug treatment, and counseling services for eligible wards of the juvenile court. A minor selected for the boot camp academy program shall meet all of the criteria described in Section 731.4 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

SEC. 2.

 Section 731.3 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:

731.3.
 Any minor who is 15 years of age or older and who is found to have committed an offense described in subdivision (c) of Section 48915 of the Education Code at school or a school activity off school grounds shall be committed to the Department of the Youth Authority, except as otherwise provided in Section 731.4.

SEC. 3.

 Section 731.4 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:

731.4.
 (a) In lieu of commitment to the Department of the Youth Authority, a minor who is found to have committed an offense described in subdivision (c) of Section 48915 of the Education Code at school or a school activity off school grounds may be placed in a 12-month residential boot camp academy program operated by the Military Department pursuant to Section 531 of the Military and Veterans Code, as provided in subdivisions (b) and (c).
(b) In order to be eligible to participate in a residential boot camp academy program described in subdivision (a), a minor shall meet all of the following criteria:
(1) The minor is 15 years of age or older.
(2) The minor has not been previously found to have committed any offense described in subdivision (b) of Section 707.
(3) The minor has not previously participated in the Military Department’s boot camp academy program.
(4) The minor has not previously been committed to the Department of the Youth Authority.
(c) Prior to referral to a residential boot camp academy program the minor shall be assessed by the county probation officer. The assessment shall determine whether the minor is physically and psychologically suitable to participate in the program. The assessment shall also include a determination as to the availability of space in the residential boot camp academy program. If the minor is found to be unsuitable for placement in the program, or if space is not available, the minor shall be returned to the juvenile court for commitment to the Department of the Youth Authority, pursuant to Section 731.3. The minor shall be permitted to withdraw an admission of guilt entered pursuant to a deferred entry of judgment program established pursuant to Article 20.5 (commencing with Section 790), and the case shall proceed pursuant to Article 17 (commencing with Section 675).
(d) This section shall apply only in a county in which the board of supervisors has adopted a resolution making this section and Article 20.5 (commencing with Section 790) applicable to the county. The resolution shall state the intention of the county to comply with all of the requirements of those provisions, and to provide transportation for the minors to and from the boot camp academy.

SEC. 4.

 Article 20.5 (commencing with Section 790) is added to Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 2 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:
Article  20.5. Deferred Entry of Judgment

790.
 (a) Notwithstanding Section 654 or 654.2, or any other provision of law, this article shall apply whenever a case is before the juvenile court for a determination of whether a minor is a person described in Section 602 because of the commission of an offense described in subdivision (c) of Section 48915 of the Education Code at school or a school activity off school grounds, if all of the following circumstances apply:
(1) The minor has not previously been committed to the custody of the Youth Authority.
(2) The minor’s record does not indicate that probation has ever been revoked without being completed.
(3) The minor is at least 15 years of age at the time of the hearing.
(4) The minor is eligible for probation pursuant to Section 1203.06 of the Penal Code.
(b) The prosecuting attorney shall review his or her file to determine whether or not paragraphs (1) to (4), inclusive, of subdivision (a) apply. Upon the agreement of the prosecuting attorney, the public defender or the minor’s private defense attorney, and the presiding judge of the juvenile court or a judge designated by the presiding judge to the application of this article, this procedure shall be completed as soon as possible after the initial filing of the petition. If the prosecuting attorney, the defense attorney, and the juvenile court judge do not agree, the case shall proceed according to Article 17 (commencing with Section 675). If the minor is found eligible for deferred entry of judgment, the prosecuting attorney shall file a declaration in writing with the court or state for the record the grounds upon which the determination is based, and shall make this information available to the minor and his or her attorney. Under this procedure, the court may set the hearing for deferred entry of judgment at the initial appearance under Section 657.

791.
 (a) The prosecuting attorney’s written notification to the minor shall also include all of the following:
(1) A full description of the procedures for deferred entry of judgment.
(2) A general explanation of the roles and authorities of the probation department, the prosecuting attorney, the program, and the court in that process.
(3) A clear statement that, in lieu of jurisdictional and disposition hearings, the court may grant a deferred entry of judgment with respect to any offense charged in the petition, provided that the minor admits each allegation contained in the petition and waives time for the pronouncement of judgment, and that upon the successful completion of the 12-month residential boot camp academy program, the positive recommendation of the probation department, and the motion of the prosecuting attorney, the court shall dismiss the charge or charges against the minor.
(4) A clear statement that upon any failure of the minor to comply with the orders and requirements of the Military Department’s boot camp academy program or any circumstances specified in Section 793, the prosecuting attorney or the probation department, or the court on its own, may make a motion to the court for entry of judgment and the court shall render a finding that the minor is a ward of the court pursuant to Section 602 for the offenses specified in the original petition and shall schedule a dispositional hearing.
(5) An explanation of record retention and disposition resulting from participation in the deferred entry of judgment program and the minor’s rights relative to answering questions about his or her arrest and deferred entry of judgment following successful completion of the program.
(b) If the minor consents and waives his or her right to a speedy jurisdictional hearing, the court may refer the case to the probation department or the court may summarily grant deferred entry of judgment if the minor admits a charge or charges in the petition and waives time for the pronouncement of judgment. When directed by the court, the probation department shall make an investigation and take into consideration the defendant’s age, maturity, educational background, family relationships, demonstrable motivation, treatment history, if any, and other mitigating and aggravating factors in determining whether the minor is a person who would be benefited by participation in the 12-month residential boot camp academy program offered by the Military Department. The probation department shall report its findings and recommendations to the court. The court shall make the final determination regarding education, treatment, and rehabilitation of the minor.
(c) A minor’s admission of the charges contained in the petition shall not constitute a finding that a petition has been sustained for any purpose, unless a judgment is entered pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 793.

792.
 The judge shall issue a citation directing any custodial parent, guardian, or foster parent of the minor to appear at the time and place set for the hearing, and directing any person having custody or control of the minor concerning whom the petition has been filed to bring the minor with him or her. The notice shall explain the provisions of Section 170.6 of the Code of Civil Procedure. Personal service shall be made at least 24 hours before the time stated for the appearance.

793.
 (a) If, after accepting deferred entry of judgment and during the period in which deferred entry of judgment was granted, the minor is convicted of, or declared to be a person described in Section 602 for the commission of, any felony offense or of any two misdemeanor offenses committed on separate occasions, the judge shall enter judgment and schedule a dispositional hearing. If the minor is convicted of, or found to be a person described in Section 602, because of the commission of one misdemeanor offense, or multiple misdemeanor offenses committed during a single occasion, the court may enter judgment and schedule a dispositional hearing.
(b) If the judgment previously deferred is imposed and a dispositional hearing scheduled pursuant to subdivision (a), the juvenile court shall report the complete criminal history of the minor to the Department of Justice.
(c) (1) If the minor has performed satisfactorily during the period in which deferred entry of judgment was granted, at the end of that period the charge or charges in the wardship petition shall be dismissed and the arrest upon which the judgment was deferred shall be deemed never to have occurred and any records in the possession of the juvenile court shall be sealed, except that the prosecuting attorney and the probation department of any county shall have access to these records after they are sealed for the limited purpose of determining whether a minor is eligible for deferred entry of judgment pursuant to Section 790. Nothing in this section is intended to abrogate the minor’s rights pursuant to Section 781 regarding the sealing of records.
(2) If the minor successfully completes the one-year residential treatment component of a Military Department boot camp academy program, the minor shall be permitted to reenroll in the school from which he or she was expelled pursuant to Section 48915 of the Education Code, if applicable.

794.
 The judge shall impose, as a condition of placement in a Military Department boot camp academy, the requirement that the minor be subject to warrantless searches of his or her person, or property under his or her control, upon the request of the cadre of the boot camp academy. The minor shall also be required to pay restitution to the victim or victims pursuant to the provisions of this code and to comply with all orders and requirements of the Military Department’s boot camp academy program. If the minor is found to be unsuitable for continuation in the boot camp academy program, he or she shall be returned to the juvenile court to be committed to an institution operated by the Youth Authority, pursuant to Section 731.3.

795.
 This article shall only apply in a county in which the board of supervisors has adopted a resolution making this article and Section 731.4 applicable to the county. The resolution shall state the intention of the county to comply with all of the requirements of those provisions and to provide transportation for the minors to and from the boot camp academy.

SEC. 5.

 This act shall be known as the Zero Tolerance Offense Remediation Act.

SEC. 6.

 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 Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to make the programs authorized by this act available, and to make the statutory changes necessary to implement the Budget Act of 2000, at the earliest possible time, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.