Law Enforcement 2.0 Reset

Video Info - 5 , 25

Overview

California is leading the movement to reclassify felony crimes as misdemeanors. Proposition 47 reclassified a wide range of theft and drug possession crimes from felonies to misdemeanors.

Proposition 47 did not spell out specific details on extenuating circumstances for prosecuting these crimes as misdemeanors. The legal system began to create definitions and sentencing guidelines for these reclassified misdemeanors. But many district attorneys made the decision not to prosecute these misdemeanors.

Law enforcement was also criticized in their response to violent and non-violent criminal behavior. Local and state politicians supported movements to “defund the police.” Retirement and resignations among law enforcement dramatically increased.

But the rise in property crime, violent theft, fraud, and drug activity has been dramatic and has taken a serious toll on our sense of public safety.

So the question is: are we collectively ready to address the level of crime in our communities today? If so, what are the priorities and rebuilding our relationship with law enforcement?

My guest is Angela Averiett, who is the new chief of police in Los Altos, California, in the heart of Silicon Valley. Angela. Chief Averiett speaks about the key issues in addressing crime and law enforcement’s relationship with the community.

The topics addressed in this interview are:

01:18 Intro to the new Chief of Police in Los Altos
02:38 The Ride-along inflection point
03:54 Felonies reclassified as misdemeanors
05:16 The district attorney and the judge
06:47 Recruitment of new police officers
08:10 Community support for Law Enforcement
09:37 It’s OK to say hello to a police officer
10:06 How to respond during a traffic stop
11:33 Technology changes in law enforcement
14:42 Crime prevention and crime solving
15:46 How to contact the police
16:19 If you witness a crime
17:17 Final message to the community

Prop 47 Felony Reclassifications

Proposition 47

Proposition 47 was passed into law, with the November 4, 2014 California election. It requires that defendants are sentenced to misdemeanors, instead of felonies, for “non-serious, nonviolent crimes,” unless the defendant has prior convictions for murder, rape, certain sex offenses or certain gun crimes.

This law is also retroactive, so it also requires that anyone currently serving a sentence for a felony of the included offenses (without prior serious or violent offenses) to be resentenced to a misdemeanor.

Under Proposition 47, the following crimes are now solely misdemeanors:

Theft Offenses

Proposition 47 created new misdemeanors and reclassified several felony theft offenses as misdemeanors. The new misdemeanor provisions do not apply to persons with one or more prior convictions for offenses under Penal Code section 667(e)(2)(C)(iv) or for sex offenses that require registration under Penal Code section 290(c). The new provisions include:

Shoplifting. The proposition added Penal Code section 459.5 to create a new misdemeanor offense called “shoplifting,” punishable by up to 6 months in county jail. Shoplifting would be defined as “entering a commercial establishment with intent to commit larceny while that establishment is open during regular business hours” where the value of the property does not exceed $950. Any other entry into a commercial establishment with intent to commit larceny is burglary. Any act of shoplifting as defined above must be charged as shoplifting. No person charged with shoplifting may also be charged with burglary or theft of the same property.
Forgery. Before Proposition 47, forgery under Penal Code section 473 was a wobbler offense. Proposition 47 reclassified forgery of specified instruments involving $950 or less as exclusively a misdemeanor. The misdemeanor provision is not applicable to any person convicted both of forgery and identity theft under Penal Code section 530.5.
Insufficient Funds. Before Proposition 47, a violation of Penal Code section 476a was a wobbler offense, except that the offense was strictly a misdemeanor if the total underlying amount did not exceed $450, unless the person was previously convicted of one of several specified theft offenses. Proposition 47 increased the total threshold amount for misdemeanors from $450 to $950 and increased the number of disqualifying prior convictions from one to “three or more.”
Petty Theft. Proposition 47 added Penal Code section 490.2 to expressly define petty theft as “obtaining any property by theft where the value of the money, labor, real or personal property taken” does not exceed $950. This new definition of petty theft applies notwithstanding Section 487 “or any other provision of law defining grand theft.” (Pen. Code, § 490.2(a).) As such, the new definition of petty theft appears to apply regardless of how specific categories of property are treated under separate statutes. This new provision is not applicable to any theft that may be charged as an infraction “pursuant to any other provision of law.”
Receiving Stolen Property. Before Proposition 47, a violation of Penal Code section 496 was a wobbler offense, except that if the value of the property did not exceed $950, the district attorney or grand jury could specify the offense as exclusively a misdemeanor “in the interests of justice.” Proposition 4 7 rendered all violations of section 496 that do not exceed $950 as strictly misdemeanors, eliminating prosecutorial discretion to charge those offenses as felonies.
Petty Theft with a Prior. For most defendants, Proposition 47 eliminated the offense of petty theft with a prior under Penal Code section 666 by narrowing the category of persons subject to punishment under that section to only include persons required to register under the Sex Offender Registration Act, persons with prior violent or serious felony convictions under section 667.5(e)(2)(C)(iv), and persons convicted of Penal Code section 368(d) or (e) [specified theft crimes involving elder or dependent adults].

Drug Possession Offenses

Proposition 47 also reclassified drug possession offenses under Health and Safety Code sections 11350, 11357(a) [concentrated cannabis], and 11377 as strictly misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in county jail. As with the theft offenses, these new misdemeanor provisions do not apply to persons with one or more prior convictions for offenses specified under Penal Code section 667(e)(2)(C)(iv) or for a sex offense that requires registration under Penal Code section 290(c).