SB 481 – (Durazo) Status: SB-481: Sentencing: special circumstances. On 03-JUN-21 the following history action was applied: "Ordered to inactive file on request of Senator Durazo."Background: California law permits young people between the ages of 18 and 25 years old to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The California legislature has taken steps in recent years to align public policy with advances in scientific research supporting Youth Offender Parole hearings (YOP) for young people under 25. Most recently, California Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu stated in his concurring opinion of People v. Montelongo that, “there is good reason for legislative reconsideration" of the Youth Offender Parole statute, expanding it to allow individuals sentenced to LWOP at or before age 25. Justice Liu stated that the current YOP eligibility scheme – which excludes individuals sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for offenses committed between ages 18 and 25 – may “stand in tension” with Miller v Alabama (2012). Research and evidence on adult development and neuroscience have established that certain areas of the brain, particularly those affecting decision making and judgment, do not fully develop until the early-to-mid-twenties. . . . SB 481 provides individuals sentenced to LWOP for crimes committed when the person was 25 years of age or younger, the right to petition for a resentencing hearing after serving 15 years of their original sentence.
SB 775 – (Becker) Status: SB-775: Felony murder: resentencing. On 02-JUN-21 the following history action was applied: “Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 30. Noes 8.) Ordered to the Assembly."Background: This bill 1) Clarifies that a person who was convicted of attempted murder under the natural and probable consequences doctrine or any other theory under which malice is imputed to the person based solely on their participation in a crime or who was convicted of manslaughter when the prosecution was allowed to proceed on a theory of felony murder or murder under the natural and probable consequences doctrine, to apply to have their sentence vacated and be resentenced. 2) Requires a court to find a prima facie showing has been made that a petitioner falls within resentencing provisions unless the declaration fails to show that they meet the requirements for resentencing. 3) Specifies that upon receiving a petition in which the information required is set forth or a petition where any missing information can be readily ascertained by the court, if the petitioner has requested counsel the court shall appoint counsel to represent the petitioner. 4) Specifies that a finding that there is substantial evidence to support a conviction of murder, attempted murder, or manslaughter is insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the petitioner is ineligible for resentencing. 5) Provides that a person convicted of murder, attempted murder, or manslaughter whose conviction is not final may challenge on direct appeal the validity of that conviction.
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