California 2023-2024 Regular Session Status: Passed Senate 4 D cosponsors

SB 898 — Criminal procedure: sexual assault resentencing.

Last action — Ordered to third reading.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed Assembly
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2023-2024 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there are no live odds of enactment. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Existing law requires the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to ensure that specified procedures are performed in the investigation and prosecution of sexual abuse incidents, including, among others, that an employee must be terminated if an investigation confirms that the employee sexually abused an inmate. Existing law requires administrators to report criminal sexual abuse by staff to law enforcement authorities. This bill would require the department to monitor for 90 days an incarcerated person who reports sexual abuse, and the incarcerated person reported to have suffered the abuse, by a staff person at a department facility for possible retaliation. Existing law authorizes a defendant to submit to a sentencing court a petition for recall and resentencing when a defendant, who was under 18 years of age at the time of the commission of a specified offense for which the defendant was sentenced to imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole, has been incarcerated for at least 15 years. Existing law authorizes a court to consider specified factors when determining whether to resentence the defendant to a term of imprisonment with the possibility of parole including, among others, that the defendant has had no disciplinary actions for violent activities in the last five years in which the defendant was determined to be the aggressor. This bill would authorize a court to also consider if the defendant has been a victim of sexual abuse or sexual violence at any time during their incarceration when determining whether to resentence the defendant to a term of imprisonment with the possibility of parole. Existing law authorizes, when a defendant has been committed to the state prison or to a county jail for the commission of a felony, the court to recall the sentence and either reduce a defendant's term by modifying the sentence, or vacate the conviction and impose judgment on any necessarily included lesser offense or lesser related offense and, resentence the defendant to a reduced term. Existing law requires the court to consider, in recalling and resentencing pursuant to these provisions, postconviction factors, including, among others, evidence that circumstances have changed since the original sentencing so that continued incarceration is no longer in the interest of justice. Existing law states that a defendant is not entitled to relief from these provisions, and that a court is not required to respond to a defendant's requests for relief pursuant to these provisions. This bill would authorize, beginning on July 1, 2025, a defendant to file a petition for relief pursuant to these provisions, and would make that defendant entitled to a response from the court, if, among other things, the defendant is currently committed to the custody of the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the defendant currently has a minimum sentence of at least 15 years, and the application of the current sentencing rules of the Judicial Council and any changes in sentencing laws enacted since the defendant was last sentenced would make the defendant eligible for a reduced sentence if applied to the defendant. Existing law requires various civil actions to be brought within specified periods of time, but these periods of limitation are tolled for 2 years during the time that the person entitled to bring the action is imprisoned on a criminal charge for a term less than life. However, under existing law these provisions do not apply to an action brought against a public entity or public employee, as specified. This bill would require an action for sexual assault brought against a public entity or public employee by a person who is imprisoned on a criminal charge, or in execution under the sentence of a criminal court, to be tolled during the period of imprisonment and until one year after the release from actual custody.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Ordered to third reading.

  2. Read third time and amended.

  3. Ordered to third reading.

  4. Read third time and amended.

  5. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  6. Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

  7. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 11. Noes 3.) (August 15).

  8. August 7 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.

  9. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 1.) (July 2). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  10. Coauthors revised.

  11. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S.

  12. (Corrected June 13.)

  13. Re-referred to Com. on PUB. S. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96.

  14. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.

  15. Referred to Com. on TRANS.

  16. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.

  17. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 26. Noes 9. Page 4081.) Ordered to the Assembly.

  18. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  19. From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8.

  20. Set for hearing May 6.

  21. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 4. Page 3731.) (April 23). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  22. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on TRANS.

  23. Set for hearing April 23.

  24. April 9 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.

  25. Set for hearing April 9.

  26. Referred to Com. on TRANS.

  27. From printer. May be acted upon on or after February 3.

  28. Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 6 co-sponsors · 115 not signed on · 12 voted No

Sponsors (1)

  • Skinner

Co-sponsors (6)

Not signed on (115)

115 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 115 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

Do pass as amended.

Passed 11 Yea · 3 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 9000
Unaffiliated 2001
Republican 0300
Total 11301
% of votes cast 73%20%0%7%
How each member voted (15)
Member Party Vote
Villapudua — Yea
Jim Patterson — Not Voting
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Bryan, Isaac G. Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Haney, Matt Democratic Yea
Hart, Gregg Democratic Yea
Pellerin, Gail Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Dixon, Diane Republican Nay
Sanchez, Kate Republican Nay
Ta, Tri Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]

Passed 6 Yea · 1 Nay · 1 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 2000
Democratic 4000
Republican 0101
Total 6101
% of votes cast 75%13%0%13%
How each member voted (8)
Member Party Vote
Ting — Yea
McCarty — Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Yea
Wilson, Lori D. Democratic Yea
Zbur, Rick Chavez Democratic Yea
Alanis, Juan Republican Nay
Lackey, Tom Republican Not Voting

Official roll call →

3rd Reading

Passed 26 Yea · 9 Nay · 5 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 20101
Unaffiliated 6104
Republican 0700
Total 26905
% of votes cast 65%23%0%13%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Atkins — Yea
Newman — Yea
Min — Yea
Eggman — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Skinner — Yea
Wilk — Nay
Roth — Not Voting
Portantino — Not Voting
Glazer — Not Voting
Dodd — Not Voting
Allen, Benjamin Democratic Not Voting
Archuleta, Bob Democratic Yea
Ashby, Angelique V. Democratic Yea
Becker, Josh Democratic Yea
Blakespear, Catherine S. Democratic Yea
Caballero, Anna M. Democratic Yea
Cortese, Dave Democratic Yea
Durazo, Maria Elena Democratic Yea
Gonzalez, Lena A. Democratic Yea
Hurtado, Melissa Democratic Yea
Laird, John Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Menjivar, Caroline Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Nay
Padilla, Stephen C. Democratic Yea
Rubio, Susan Democratic Yea
Smallwood-Cuevas, Lola Democratic Yea
Stern, Henry I. Democratic Yea
Umberg, Thomas J. Democratic Yea
Wahab, Aisha Democratic Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Yea
Alvarado-Gil, Marie Republican Nay
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Grove, Shannon Republican Nay
Jones, Brian W. Republican Nay
Niello, Roger W. Republican Nay
Ochoa Bogh, Rosilicie Republican Nay
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]

Passed 9 Yea · 4 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 8100
Unaffiliated 1002
Republican 0300
Total 9402
% of votes cast 60%27%0%13%
How each member voted (15)
Member Party Vote
Newman — Yea
Portantino — Not Voting
Dodd — Not Voting
Allen, Benjamin Democratic Yea
Archuleta, Bob Democratic Yea
Blakespear, Catherine S. Democratic Yea
Cortese, Dave Democratic Yea
Gonzalez, Lena A. Democratic Yea
Laird, John Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Nay
Umberg, Thomas J. Democratic Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Nay
Niello, Roger W. Republican Nay
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Subjects

public-safety civil-rights
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Frequently asked questions

What does SB 898 do?
Existing law requires the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to ensure that specified procedures are performed in the investigation and prosecution of sexual abuse incidents, including, among others, that an employee must be terminated if an investigation confirms that the employee sexually abused an inmate. Existing law requires administrators to report criminal sexual abuse by staff to law enforcement authorities. This bill would require the department to monitor for 90 days an incarcerated person who reports sexual abuse, and the incarcerated person reported to have suffered the abuse, by a staff person at a department facility for possible retaliation. Existing law authorizes a defendant to submit to a sentencing court a petition for recall and resentencing when a defendant, who was under 18 years of age at the time of the commission of a specified offense for which the defendant was sentenced to imprisonment for life without the possibility of parole, has been incarcerated for at least 15 years. Existing law authorizes a court to consider specified factors when determining whether to resentence the defendant to a term of imprisonment with the possibility of parole including, among others, that the defendant has had no disciplinary actions for violent activities in the last five years in which the defendant was determined to be the aggressor. This bill would authorize a court to also consider if the defendant has been a victim of sexual abuse or sexual violence at any time during their incarceration when determining whether to resentence the defendant to a term of imprisonment with the possibility of parole. Existing law authorizes, when a defendant has been committed to the state prison or to a county jail for the commission of a felony, the court to recall the sentence and either reduce a defendant's term by modifying the sentence, or vacate the conviction and impose judgment on any necessarily included lesser offense or lesser related offense and, resentence the defendant to a reduced term. Existing law requires the court to consider, in recalling and resentencing pursuant to these provisions, postconviction factors, including, among others, evidence that circumstances have changed since the original sentencing so that continued incarceration is no longer in the interest of justice. Existing law states that a defendant is not entitled to relief from these provisions, and that a court is not required to respond to a defendant's requests for relief pursuant to these provisions. This bill would authorize, beginning on July 1, 2025, a defendant to file a petition for relief pursuant to these provisions, and would make that defendant entitled to a response from the court, if, among other things, the defendant is currently committed to the custody of the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the defendant currently has a minimum sentence of at least 15 years, and the application of the current sentencing rules of the Judicial Council and any changes in sentencing laws enacted since the defendant was last sentenced would make the defendant eligible for a reduced sentence if applied to the defendant. Existing law requires various civil actions to be brought within specified periods of time, but these periods of limitation are tolled for 2 years during the time that the person entitled to bring the action is imprisoned on a criminal charge for a term less than life. However, under existing law these provisions do not apply to an action brought against a public entity or public employee, as specified. This bill would require an action for sexual assault brought against a public entity or public employee by a person who is imprisoned on a criminal charge, or in execution under the sentence of a criminal court, to be tolled during the period of imprisonment and until one year after the release from actual custody.
Who sponsors SB 898?
SB 898 is sponsored by Skinner, Atkins, Menjivar, Caroline (Democratic), Bonta, Mia (Democratic), Quirk-Silva, Sharon (Democratic), Waldron, and Rubio, Susan (Democratic).
What is the current status of SB 898?
This bill died with 2023-2024 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 898?
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