BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE RULES COMMITTEE
Office of Senate Floor Analyses
1020 N Street, Suite 524
(916) 445-6614 Fax: (916) 327-4478
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THIRD READING
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Bill No: AB 1397
Author: Poochigian (R), et al
Amended: 9/11/95 in Senate
Vote: 27
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SENATE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/27/95
AYES: Campbell, Johnson, Kopp, Polanco, Watson,
Boatwright, Marks
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 10-0, 9/6/95
AYES: Johnston, Alquist, Calderon, Dills, Hughes, Kelley,
Leonard, Lewis, Mello, Mountjoy
NOT VOTING: Killea, Leslie, Polanco,
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 60-8, 6/2/95 - See last page for vote
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SUBJECT: Violent Weapons Suppression Program
SOURCE: California Attorney General
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DIGEST: This bill appropriates $1,200,000 from the
General Fund to the Department of Justice to support the
Violent Weapons Suppression Program and continue to assist
local and federal law enforcement agencies in California.
ANALYSIS: Under current law:
1. An "armed career criminal" is a person who has
previously been convicted of three serious felonies in
this state, or offenses committed in other jurisdictions
which include all of the elements of a serious felony. A
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serious felony as used in this section means a serious
felony listed in Penal Code section 1192.7(c). (Penal
Code section 13855.1.)
2. A "criminal street gang" is any ongoing organization,
association, or group of three or more persons, whether
formal or informal, having as one of its primary
activities the commission of one or more criminal acts,
as specified, having a common name or common identifying
sign or symbol, and whose members individually or
collectively engage in or have engaged in a pattern of
criminal gang activity. (Penal Code section 186.22.)
3. The Career Criminal Apprehension Program (CCAP) is a
program of financial, training, and technical assistance
for local law enforcement, administered by the Office of
Criminal Justice Planning. Law enforcement agencies
receiving funding under this program are mandated to
employ enhanced law enforcement efforts and resources to
identify and arrest career criminals and the support of
their subsequent prosecution. (Penal Code section 13850,
et seq.)
This bill appropriates $1,200,000 from the General Fund to
the Department of Justice for the purpose of supporting the
program and employing the necessary special agents, support
staff, and material resources to implement the program.
Background/Prior Legislation:
In mid-1993, the pilot project Operation Disarm was
developed to target violence-prone individuals who utilize
weapons to carry out criminal acts. This project operated
between October and December 1993 and involved the direct
participation of the Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement,
Department of Corrections, the California Youth Authority,
Los Angeles County Probation Department, other Los Angeles
County local police departments, the Federal Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the U.S. Attorney's
Office.
During Operation Disarm, it became apparent that the
criminal history profiles of the typical arrestee included
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multiple counts of violent crimes, weapons violations, sex
crimes, and drug crimes. It was not uncommon for Disarm
project arrestees to have between 15 and 30 previous felony
arrests on their record. Thus, by targeting individuals
with a proven history of extensive violence-prone criminal
activity, law enforcement could have a very high level of
impact on crimes committed in a given area with a
relatively low level of arrests.
In the fall of 1994, as a result of the efforts mentioned
above, the Department of Justice initiated the Violence
Suppression Program as a statewide pilot project to further
validate the "operation Disarm" concept and begin having an
immediate impact on violent crime in California's
communities.
There are currently 24 agents employed and specially
trained by the Department of Justice who are assigned to
regional offices throughout the state. These agents,
working in conjunction with local and federal law
enforcement agencies, identify and investigate individuals
and organizations involved in illegal activities,
specifically focusing on repeat violent offenders and
career criminals.
According to the DOJ's First Six-Month Activity Summary of
this program, a total of 439 arrests were made during the
first six months of operation. The majority of those
apprehended were on parole or probation at the time of
their arrest and 72% have criminal history profiles which
include a felony conviction. More than 125 of those
arrested are associates of criminal street gangs. As a
result of these arrests, 376 illegally possessed weapons
have been seized, including machine guns, hand grenades,
explosives, assault weapons, shotguns, rifles, and
handguns.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Yes Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
General Fund appropriation of $1.2 million.
SUPPORT: (Verified 9/11/95)
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California Attorney General (source)
California Narcotic Officers' Association
Doris Tate Crime Victims Bureau
Orange County Chiefs' and Sheriff's Association
Neil J. Purcell, Chief of Police,
City of Laguna Beach
Michael R. Capizzi, Orange County District Attorney
Thomas H. Simms, Chief of Police, City of Roseville
Michael Schumacher,
Chief, Orange County Probation Department
Steve Staveley, Chief of Police,
City of La Habra
Patrick E. McKinley, Chief of Police, City of Fullerton
Mike Skogh, Chief of Police, City of Los Alamitos
Orange County Narcotic
Officers Association
Grover Trask, District Attorney, Riverside County
Patrick A. Smith, Chief of Police, City of Beaumont
Richard Sill, Chief of Police, City of Chino
Tom Engstrom, Chief of Police, City of Lakeport
Rodney K. Mitchell, Sheriff, Lake County
Stephen O. Hedstrom, District Attorney, Lake County
Lee Dean, Chief of Police, City of Vacaville
Douglas Milender, Chief of Police, City of Fairfield
Robert Chalk, Chief of Police, City of Clearlake
Rick Fuller, Chief of Police, City of Dixon
Daniel R. Monez, Chief of Police, City of Napa
Anthony Perez, District Attorney, Napa County
Warren E. Rupf, Sheriff-Coroner, County of Contra Costa
Larry J. Shaw, Chief of Police, City of Brentwood
Thomas Bickell, Chief of Police, Fort Bragg
Bert Johansson, Chief of Police, City of Saint Helena
Willis Casey, Chief of Police, City of Pittsburg
Daniel Givens, Chief of Police, City of El Cerrito
Otto Wm. Giuliani, Chief of Police, City of Benicia
Larry Profitt, Chief of Police, City of Rio Vista
Norm Venturino, Chief of Police, City of Clayton
Elvin G. Miali, Chief of Police, City of Fountain Valley
Daryl M. Wicker, Chief of Police, City of Cypress
Michael A. Morello, Chief of Police, City Auburn
William Mintline, Chief of Police, City of Colfax
Jerry Shadinger, Sheriff, Colusa County
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Anthony F. Cardenas, Chief of Police, City of Corning
David L. Snowden, Chief of Police, City of Costa Mesa
Phillip V. Coleman, Police Chief, City of Davis
Harold Barker, Chief of Police, City of Folsom
Ronald E. Lowenberg, Chief of Police, City of Huntington
Beach
Charles S. Brobeck, Chief of Police, City of Irvine
David S. Barr, Chief of Police, City of La Palma
Bill Smull, Acting Chief of Police, City of Lincoln
Los Angeles County Police Chiefs' Association
John M. Simpson, Chief of Police, City of Marysville
Mel E. McDougal, Chief of Police, Nevada City
John R. Robertson, Chief of Police, City of Orange
Gordon E. Pitter, Chief of Police, City of Oroville
Gerald R. Harper, Chief Probation Officer, Placer County
Edward N. Bonner, Sheriff, Placer County
Manuel E. Ortega, Chief of Police, City of Placentia
Richard A. Bull, Director of Public Safety, City of Red
Bluff
Robert Blankenship, Chief of Police, City of Redding
Gary A. Prince, Chief of Police, City of Rocklin
Arturo Venegas, Jr., Chief of Police, City of Sacramento
Paul M. Walters, Chief of Police, City of Santa Ana
W.D. "Bill" Stearns, Chief of Police, City of Seal Beach
Solano County Police Chiefs and Sheriff Association
Michael R. Efford, Chief of Police, City of Sonora
David Solaro, Chief of Police, City of South Lake Tahoe
James Tuso, Sheriff-Coroner, Mendocino County
Graham J. Desvernine, Desvernine Associates
Fred W. Keplinger, Director of Public Safety, City of
Ukiah
Russ Smith, Chief of Police, City of Woodland
Bart Simpson, Undersheriff, County of Yolo
Bob McDonell, Chief of Police, City of Newport Beach
Citizens for Law and Order, Inc.
Sherman Block, Sheriff, Los Angeles County
Steve Magarian, Sheriff, Fresno County
Stan Knee, Chief of Police, City of Garden Grove
Tom Sawyer, Sheriff-Coroner, Merced County
Bruce Mix, Sheriff-Coroner, Modoc County
John H. Cleghorn, Chief of Police, City of Corona
Samuel C. Scott, Chief of Police, City of Fontana
Ken Fortier, Chief of Police, City of Riverside
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Larry Smith, Sheriff, Riverside County
Nathaniel Holmes III, Chief of Police, City of San Jacinto
California Organization of Police and Sheriffs
Richard F. Thomas, Chief of Police, City of Buenaventura
Douglas Krathwohl, Chief of Police, City of San Pablo
David W. Paulson, District Attorney, Solano County
W. Douglas Franks, Chief of Police, City of Tustin
Alan D. Bersin, U.S. Attorney, Southern District of
California
James E. Oman, Chief of Police, City of Brea
N.A. Traub, Chief of Police, City of Coachelia
Department of California Highway Patrol
James H. Gomez, Director, California Department of
Corrections
Tony Simpson, Sheriff, Cobb County
Roy T. Ramirez, Chief of Police, City of Indio
Ron Scott, Chief of Police, City of Livermore
Brown D. Taylor, Chief of Police, City of Mountain View
Chris Durkin, Chief of Police, City of Palo Alto
Northern California Sheriffs Group
Jim Pope, Sheriff-Coroner, Shasta County
California District Attorneys Association
California Union of Safety Employees
California State Sheriffso Association
Individuals
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author, this bill
will:
--.allow this highly successful Violence Suppression
Program to more fully respond to the needs of other state
and local enforcement agencies who do not have adequate
resources to address the illegal weapons and violent
offender problem in their respective communities. The
purpose and primary concern of this program is to promote
public safety in specific California communities by
initiating the investigation and apprehension of career
criminals involved in violent crimes. The specific
mission is to target and apprehend that smaller
percentage of predator who commit the greatest percentage
of violent crimes, thus saving our innocent citizens from
becoming victims.
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-- The goal of this program is not to create a high volume
arrest model, but rather a high quality arrest model,
thereby allowing the program to most significantly impact
the violent crime problem in California while holding the
number of arrests down to only those career violent
criminals who pose an imminent threat to California's
communities. In this way the highest impact to public
safety can be obtained while achieving the smallest
impact on over-crowded correctional facilities.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR:
AYES: Aguiar, Alby, Allen, Alpert, Baca, Baldwin, Battin,
Boland, Bordonaro, Bowen, Bowler, Brewer, Brulte,
Cannella, Conroy, Cortese, Cunneen, Figueroa, Firestone,
Frusetta, Goldsmith, Granlund, Hannigan, Harvey, Hauser,
Hawkins, Hoge, House, Isenberg, Kaloogian, Katz, Knight,
Knowles, Knox, Kuykendall, Machado, Martinez, Mazzoni,
McDonald, McPherson, Miller, Morrissey, Morrow, W.
Murray, Napolitano, Olberg, Poochigian, Pringle, Rainey,
Richter, Rogan, Setencich, Speier, Sweeney, Takasugi,
Thompson, Tucker, Weggeland, Woods, W. Brown
NOES: Bates, Caldera, Davis, Friedman, Gallegos, K.
Murray, Sher, Villaraigosa
NOT VOTING: Archie-Hudson, V. Brown, Burton, Bustamante,
Campbell, Ducheny, Escutia, Kuehl, Lee, Vasconcellos
RJG:jk 9/11/95 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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