Sac'to Bill To Toughen Penalties On Hit-Run Drivers Blocked By Ass'y Approps Committee Chair Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher
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(May 22, 2021, 5:35 a.m.) -- AB 582, a bill by Assemblman Jim Patterson (R, Fresno), joined by NLB-area Assemblyman Mike Gipson (D, NLB/Compton/Carson), that would have increased and broadened penalties in hit-run incidents, was blocked from an Assembly floor vote for the rest of 2021 by Assembly Committee chair Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D, San Diego).
The bill would have increased the scope of hit/runs to include not immediately stopping after an incident, increased maximum prison sentences for fatal hit/runs from 4 years to 6 years and put an added penalty on drivers who hit/run while drunk. It was introduced on February 11, 2021 and its Assembly authors included Assemblman Eduardo Garcia (D, Salton Sea) and its co-authors included Assemblymembers Arambula, Gallagher, Gray, Lackey, Mathis Mathis, and Seyarto with Senate co-authors Bates and Borgeas
In April, AB 582 passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee (7-1: Yes: Bauer-Kahan, Jones-Sawyer, Lackey, Quirk, Santiago, Seyarto, Wicks; No: Lee) and was placed on the Assembly Appropriations Committee "suspense file." That effectively gave Appropriations Committee chair Gonzales Fletcher the power to hold the bill in her committee and prevent it from reaching the Assembly floor for the rest of 2021, which she did.
AB 582 could be taken up in January 2022 although it's not immediately clear if the author will do so. If it again fails to advance it will be the third year in a row the bill (in similar forms) has failed passage in Sac'to's Democrat majority state legislature.
The City of Long Beach, which has been the site of multiple hit/run collisions and fatalities, took no position on the bill. The LB City Council's "Public Safety Committee" (chaired since early Feb. 2021 by Councilwoman Suely Saro) never discussed the AB 582 and no Council incumbents agendized it for a Council vote.
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A legislative analysis by the Assembly Public Safety Committee (April 2021) listed registered support/opposition as follows:
Support
California Association of Highway Patrolmen
California District Attorneys Association
California State Sheriffs' Association
Fresno County District Attorney's Office
Fresno Police Department
Fresno Police Officers Association (FPOA)
Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC)
Streets are For Everyone (SAFE)
Opposition
American Civil Liberties Union/Northern California/Southern California/San Diego and Imperial Counties
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
San Francisco Public Defender
Sponsor
The Assembly Public Safety Committee's legislative analysis included a statement by the author as follows in pertinent part:
Last year, this Public Safety Committee realized that there is currently a perverse loophole in the law, that inadvertently encourages drivers to flee the scene of an accident -- particularly if they are under the influence -- rather
than stay at the scene to render aid or call 911...Often, drivers who leave the scene of an accident do so because they are under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time and fear the consequences. To deter drivers from leaving the scene, AB 582 will increase the possible penalty for hit-and-runs resulting in great bodily injury or death. By bringing this code more into line with the penalties assessed for vehicular manslaughter and making them greater than a DUI sentence, AB 582 will encourage drivers to stay at the scene of a crime, even if they may be under the influence, as opposed to fleeing the scene. This will help ensure that justice is served in a timely and appropriate manner."
...Fleeing the Scene of an Accident Resulting in Injury: Vehicle Code section 20001 is commonly known as "hit and run." To prove a violation of hit and run resulting in permanent, serious injury or death the prosecution must establish that: (1) the defendant was
involved in a vehicle accident while driving; (2) the accident caused permanent, serious injury or death to another; (3) the defendant knew that he or she was involved in an accident that injured another person, or knew from the nature of the accident that it was probable that another person had been injured; and, (4) the defendant willfully failed to perform one or more duties, including immediately stopping at the scene, providing reasonable assistance to any injured person, to provide specified identifying information, and showing driver’s license upon request...The purpose of [the statute] is to prevent the driver of an automobile from leaving the scene of an accident in which he participates or is involved without proper identification and to compel necessary assistance to those who may be injured. The requirements of the statute are operative and binding on all drivers involved in an accident regardless of any question of their negligence respectively...[I]t is not necessary to drive impaired, recklessly or negligently. These duties apply regardless of the fault of the accident. Currently, the crime of hit and run resulting in death or permanent, serious injury is a wobbler. The crime is punishable by up to one year in jail, or up to four years in prison.
This bill would increase the punishment to a maximum of six years in prison where the accident results in death...
Sponsor
Sponsor
In arguments pro/con, the legislative analysis stated:
Argument in Support: According to the Streets Are For Everyone, "AB 582 is named after Gavin Gladding, a beloved Clovis Unified School District Vice Principal who was tragically killed in a hit-and-run incident in 2018. Currently, the penalty for an individual who leaves the scene of a vehicle accident resulting in permanent serious injury or death is a maximum of four years and/or a fine of $1,000-$10,000.
The potential sentence for leaving the scene of a crash is not enough to deter drivers, especially those who may be under the influence, from leaving the scene. When these drivers leave the scene, not only are they failing to render aid to any injured victim, but they are also removing evidence from the scene of a crime. Law enforcement officials are not able to conduct field sobriety tests of the driver, document his/her statement, or collect any other pertinent information and evidence, therefore hamstringing the entire investigation.
Conversely, if someone under the influence were to stay at the scene, that person could (and likely would) then be given a longer prison sentence (possibly even twelve years or more) and/or a higher fine, than an individual who fled the scene.
As noted by the Assembly Public Safety Committee members in 2019, there is currently a loophole in the law as it is written that inadvertently encourages someone to flee the scene of an accident, and it needs to be addressed.
AB 582 addresses this loophole and will increase the possible penalty for hit-and-runs resulting in death to a maximum possible penalty of six years in jail. By bringing this code more in line with the penalties assessed for vehicular manslaughter, AB 582 will encourage drivers to stay at the scene of a crime, even if they may be under the influence.”
Argument in Opposition: According to the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, This bill would unnecessarily increase the punishment for fleeing the scene of an accident that resulted in someone’s death to 3, 4 or 6 years in state prison. Current law already imposes significant penalties for fleeing the scene of an accident that causes serious injury or death; 2, 3, or 4 years in state prison. Fundamental legal principles require any sentence to be anchored in the underlying offense. Here, the act of leaving the scene is not the cause of the injury. Instead, most of these cases involve unintentional accidents as opposed to deliberate actions with the intent to cause injuries or death. No one should flee the scene of an accident; however, current law sufficiently and appropriately punishes this behavior.
Sponsor
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