BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, Chair
2015-2016 Regular Session
AB 439 (Bloom)
Version: April 8, 2015
Hearing Date: June 9, 2015
Fiscal: Yes
Urgency: No
NR
SUBJECT
Protective orders: batterer's program
DESCRIPTION
This bill, would require a restrained party, who has been
ordered to participate in a batterer's program, to register for
the program by the deadline ordered by the court, or within 30
days if no deadline is indicated. This bill would require that
at the time of enrollment, the restrained party sign all
necessary program consent forms for the program to release
specified documents, including attendance records, to the court
and the protected party, and to provide the court and the
protected party with specified information regarding the
program.
This bill would additionally require the Judicial Council, by
July 1, 2016, revise or promulgate forms as necessary to
effectuate the above provisions.
BACKGROUND
With the establishment of pro-arrest policies in the 1980s,
increasing numbers of batterers were seen in criminal courts
across the country. Initially, many batterers were sentenced to
jail. Many victims began complaining that while they wanted the
domestic violence to stop, they did not want their partners
incarcerated. Thus, today most District Attorneys prosecute
domestic violence cases as misdemeanors, rather than as
felonies. In order to hold batterers accountable without
sentencing them to jail time, many batterers are ordered to
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participate in batterer's intervention programs. These 52-week
programs are at the center of California's criminal justice
response to domestic violence.
Although early evaluations suggested that batterer's
intervention programs reduced domestic violence, subsequent
studies showed little to no reduction. This is, in part,
because so many participants fail to complete their programs.
Estimates of non-completion offered by probation officers is
somewhere between 30 and 50 percent, and the only county that
tracks this data reported a non-completion rate of 89 percent.
("Reducing Domestic Violence and Other Criminal Recidivism:
Effectiveness of multilevel batterers intervention program."
Coulter, Martha; VandeWeerd, Carla
Source: Violence and Victims, Volume 24, Number 2, 2009, p. 6.)
However, when batterers complete the assigned programs, the risk
of arrest, for both domestic violence and other crimes, is
lowered. (Id. at 139-152.)
Accordingly, the law now requires, that when a defendant is
convicted of criminal domestic violence, the court and the
probation department are notified when the defendant enrolls in
a court-ordered batterer's intervention program and also
notified if the defendant fails to complete the program.
However, when courts issue civil domestic violence prevention
orders, there is no corresponding requirement that the court be
informed of the batterer's enrollment in, or completion of, the
program. To help ensure that batterers complete court-ordered
programs in a timely manner, this bill would require a
restrained party register for a court-ordered program by the
deadline provided by the court, or within 30 days if no deadline
is indicated. This bill would also aid in data collection by
requiring that the restrained party sign all necessary program
consent forms for the program to release information, including
attendance records, to the court and the protected party.
CHANGES TO EXISTING LAW
Existing law authorizes a court, under the Domestic Violence
Prevention Act, to issue and enforce a domestic violence
restraining order, including an emergency protective order, a
temporary restraining order, and a permanent restraining order.
(Fam. Code Sec. 6300 et seq.)
Existing law provides that after notice and a hearing, a court
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may require a restrained party to participate in a batterer's
program approved by the probation department, as provided.
(Fam. Code Sec. 6343.)
This bill would provide, commencing July 1, 2016, that if the
court orders a restrained party to participate in a batterer's
program pursuant, the restrained party shall do all of the
following:
register for the program by the deadline ordered by the court,
but if no deadline is ordered by the court, the restrained
party shall register no later than 30 days from the date the
order was issued;
at the time of enrollment, sign all necessary program consent
forms for the program to release proof of enrollment,
attendance records, and completion or termination reports to
the court and the protected party, or his or her attorney; and
provide the court and the protected party with the name,
address, and telephone number of the program.
This bill would require, by July 1, 2016, the Judicial Council
to revise or promulgate forms as necessary to effectuate the
provisions above.
COMMENT
1.Stated need for the bill
According to the author:
Courts do not always get accurate participation or attendance
information on a restrained party's 52-week batterer's
intervention program. Confidentiality provisions of
batterer's intervention programs prevent these programs from
providing records directly to the court absent a release
signed by the retrained party. Batterer's' intervention
programs have no explicit authority to share information with
the courts in Domestic Violence Prevention Act (DVPA) matters
the way they do in criminal cases. Information about the
restrained party's attendance in batterer's intervention
programs, including termination, is highly relevant to custody
determinations in family court. Currently, the court and the
protected party must rely on the restrained party to bring in
these records. Often, restrained parties fail to provide
records, or may even bring in falsified records. The majority
of parties in restraining order cases are self-represented,
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and may fail to provide this information on purpose, or simply
because they believe the program provides the information to
the court directly.
Additionally, current law provides no time frame within which
a person ordered into batterer's counseling must register for
counseling. Some judges routinely include a time by which a
person must register, but some do not.
2.Allows courts and victims of domestic violence to monitor
compliance with the court's orders
A family court that issues a domestic violence protective order
may order the restrained party to participate in a batterer's
intervention program, but there is no requirement that the court
be informed of the defendant's enrollment in, or completion of
the program. By requiring the restrained party to sign all
necessary paperwork so that the program can release enrollment
and attendance information to the court, this bill would ensure
that the court has the ability to oversee the defendant's
compliance with the protective order. The Executive Committee
of the Family Law Section of the State Bar (FLEXCOM), sponsor of
this bill, writes:
Under existing law, the victim of domestic violence does not
have a way of monitoring the restrained party's enrollment and
progress in a court ordered batterer's program. The victim
and his or her attorney does not have any way of ensuring that
the restrained party has timely enrolled and completed the
program successfully. Due to confidentiality, the program
will not release confirmation of the restrained party's
enrollment, attendance and either successful completion or
termination of the program. And yet, this information is
shared in a criminal domestic violence case. This information
is necessary and important as it enables the court and the
victim to ascertain if the restrained party is taking steps to
address the issues and actions that led to the issuance of a
restraining order, and whether the restrained party is making
progress in the program. Such information is valuable to the
court and the victim as it can provide the court with
information to protect the victim and allow the court to
continue monitoring the restrained party's progress and any
threat to the victim, as well as address any continued
restrictions or modifications to a parenting plan, to ensure
the protection of the minor children.
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The restrained party's enrollment in, and completion of a
court-ordered batterer's intervention program is relevant to the
parties' ongoing disputes. While it is important to confirm
that the defendant complied with the court's order, successful
completion of the program should also lead to reduced domestic
violence and other crimes. Furthermore, completion of a
batterer's program is relevant to custody disputes. Under
current law there is a rebuttable presumption against custody to
a parent who has committed domestic violence within the past
five years. Completion of a batterer's intervention program is
one way to overcome that presumption.
3.Time frame for enrolling in a court-ordered batterer's
intervention program
This bill would require a batterer to register for a
court-ordered program within the deadline set by the court or,
if no deadline is provided, within 30 days from the date the
order was issued. This provision will help ensure that
defendants register for the program in a timely fashion. Given
that these programs are 52 weeks in length, it is important that
defendants begin the process as soon as possible so that the
parties may resolve other ongoing disputes. (See Comment 2
above.)
Further, because most parties in domestic violence cases are
self-represented, this bill would require the Judicial Council
to update and/or create forms consistent with the provisions of
this bill so that the parties understand what is required, and
what information they are entitled to. The California
Partnership to End Domestic Violence writes in support, "AB 439
will help keep survivors safe by keeping their abusive partners
accountable and providing consistent and reliable information
about their progress in the batterer's program."
Support : California Police Chiefs Association; California
Partnership to End Domestic Violence
Opposition : None Known
HISTORY
Source : Executive Committee of the Family Law Section of the
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State Bar
Related Pending Legislation : None Known
Prior Legislation : SB 218 (2000) authorized the court, after
notice and a hearing, to order a restrained person to
participate in a batterer's program that has been approved by
the probation department, as specified.
Prior Vote :
Assembly Floor (Ayes 77, Noes 0)
Assembly Appropriations Committee (Ayes 17, Noes 0)
Assembly Judiciary Committee (Ayes 10, Noes 0)
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