HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 11d - Resolution Supporting and Reducing Crime and Keeping California Safe Act of 2020
DATE: November 5, 2019
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Robert Guthrie, Chief of Police
By: Dr. Jennifer Brutus, Senior Management Analyst
SUBJECT: RESOLUTION NO. 7282 SUPPORTING THE REDUCING CRIME AND
KEEPING CALIFORNIA SAFE ACT OF 2020
Recommendation: Adopt
SUMMARY
The collective impacts of the state’s criminal justice reform efforts are well known to law
enforcement agencies and communities throughout the state. The Reducing Crime and
Keep California Safe Act (the “Act”) seeks to address the unintended consequences of
Assembly Bill 109, Proposition 47, and Proposition 57 by reclassifying the list of non-
violent crimes, reforming the parole system to stop the early release of violent felons,
reforming theft laws to restore accountability for serial thieves and organized theft
gangs, and expanding DNA collection, amongst other provisions. With adoption of
Resolution No. 7282, the City of Arcadia will join an ever-growing coalition of cities and
law enforcement agencies supporting this initiative. Therefore, it is recommended that
the City Council adopt Resolution No. 7282 supporting the Reducing Crime and
Keeping California Safe Act of 2020.
BACKGROUND
In 2011, Governor Brown signed Assembly Bill 109 (“AB 109”), more commonly known
as the Public Safety Realignment Act, in order to comply with a federal court order to
reduce the state’s prison population to 137.5% of its design capacity. AB 109 aimed to
accomplish this objective by realigning incarceration authority of roughly 45,000 criminal
offenders from state prisons to county jails. Because local facilities were never designed
to house violent criminals for the duration of their prison terms, and due to the shifting
populations of the state’s prison population, AB 109 resulted in the early release of tens
of thousands criminal offenders back into local communities. It is believed that AB 109
has had a direct impact on rising property crime rates throughout the state.
Resolution No. 7282 to Support the Keeping
California Safe Act of 2020
November 5, 2019
Page 2 of 4
In 2014, California voters passed Proposition 47, the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools
Act, which reclassified a number of “non-violent, non-serious” crimes from felonies to
misdemeanors. Offenses include drug possession, repeated shoplifting, forging checks,
gun theft, and possession of date-rape drugs. The effects of this initiative have been far-
reaching, as the threshold for misdemeanor thefts has been lowered to less than $950,
allowing career criminals to game the system. Further, the normalization of drug
possession has decimated the legal system’s ability to compel addicts to enter drug
rehabilitation programs, and has been assumed as an underlying cause in the dramatic
rise of the state’s homeless population.
Finally, in 2016, California voters passed Proposition 57, the Public Safety and
Rehabilitation Act, which allows prisoners convicted of “non-violent” felonies to apply for
early release. According to the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s Office, Proposition 57
allowed for the early release of nearly 30,000 criminals convicted of felonies that
include: assault with a deadly weapon, domestic violence, first degree burglary, human
trafficking involving a minor, and active participation in a street gang, to name a few. In
addition, Proposition 57 gave the State Department of Corrections unlimited authority to
grant credits to all criminals—regardless of the nature of their crime—which would
facilitate their early release. Criminals who committed multiple crimes against multiple
victims are eligible for release at the same time as offenders who only committed single
crimes against a single victim. Lastly, and most importantly, repeat criminals are eligible
for release after the same period of incarceration as first time offenders.
DISCUSSION
The City of Arcadia has not been immune to the effects of AB 109, Proposition 47, and
Proposition 57. In 2016, the City experienced a 22% increase in violent and property
crimes when compared to 2015 levels, including 66% more burglary or attempted
burglaries and 14% more larceny attempts. By 2018, the Arcadia Police Department
spent approximately $330,000 on installing additional automated license plate reader
cameras in the City in order to increase the possibility of collecting suspect information.
In addition, the Department has spent over $20,000 on GPS tracking devices for the
BAIT Package Program, which has assisted with numerous apprehensions of theft
suspects. While the recent efforts have been positive, the long-term effects of criminal
justice reform in California and its impact on law enforcement’s policing strategies
cannot be understated.
The Reducing Crime and Keep California Safe Act seeks to address the unintended
consequences of AB 109, Proposition 47, and Proposition 57 by reclassifying the list of
non-violent crimes, reforming the parole system to stop the early release of violent
felons, reform theft laws to restore accountability for serial thieves and organized theft
gangs, and expand DNA collection, amongst other provisions.
Resolution No. 7282 to Support the Keeping
California Safe Act of 2020
November 5, 2019
Page 3 of 4
Specifically, the Act would expand the list of violent offenses that currently disqualify an
inmate from parole. Under current law, rape of an unconscious person, trafficking a
child for sex, assault of a peace officer, felony domestic violence, and other similar
crimes are not classified as “violent felonies” – making criminals convicted of these
crimes eligible for early release. If passed, the initiative would also give victims
reasonable notice of inmates’ release and the right to submit a confidential statement to
the Board of Parole Hearings.
In regards reforming the parole system, the initiative would stop the early release of
violent offenders, expand parolee oversight, and strengthen penalties for parole
violations. AB 109 bases parole solely on an offender’s commitment offense, resulting in
the release of inmates with serious and violent criminal histories. Moreover, parolees
who repeatedly violate the terms of their parole currently face few consequences,
allowing them to remain on the street. The Act would require the Board of Parole
Hearings to consider an inmate’s entire criminal history when deciding parole and not
just their recent commitment offenses, and require hearings for parolees who violate
parole terms for the third time.
The Act would also revise the theft threshold by adding a felony for serial theft – when a
person is caught for the third time stealing with a value of $250 or more. Proposition 47
changed the dollar threshold for theft to be considered a felony — from $450 to $950.
As a result, there has been an explosion of serial theft and an inability of law
enforcement to prosecute these crimes effectively. Since the passing of Proposition 47,
theft crimes have increased from 12% to 25%, with losses of a billion dollars as notated
by the Keep California Safe committee.
Furthermore, the Act would reinstate DNA collection for certain crimes that were
reduced to misdemeanors as part of Proposition 47. DNA collection would be expanded
to include those convicted of drug, theft, domestic violence, and other serious crimes to
help solve rape, murder, and other violent crime cases. Multiple studies have shown
that DNA collected from theft and drug crimes has helped solve other violent crimes,
including robbery, rape, and murder. Since passage of Proposition 47, cold case hits
have dropped over 2,000, with more than 450 of those hits connected to violent crimes.
The new collection of DNA samples would be stored in state and federal databases.
As of July 9, 2018, Secretary of State Alex Padilla reported that more than enough
signatures were submitted for the measure qualifying it to be placed on the November
3, 2020, ballot as an initiated state statute. With adoption of Resolution No. 7282, the
City of Arcadia will join an ever-growing coalition of cities and law enforcement agencies
supporting this initiative.
Resolution No. 7282 to Support the Keeping
California Safe Act of 2020
November 5, 2019
Page 4 of 4
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
The proposed action does not constitute a project under the California Environmental
Quality Act (“CEQA”), and it can be seen with certainty that it will have no impact on the
environment. Thus, this matter is exempt under CEQA.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no impact associated with the adoption of the Resolution. If the Act is ultimately
adopted, it should alleviate some public safety costs in the future as the positive impacts
of the Act trickle down to the Arcadia community.
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council determines that this project is exempt under the
California Environmental Quality Act, and adopt Resolution No. 7282 supporting the
Reducing Crime and Keeping California Safe Act of 2020.
Attachment: Resolution No. 7282