Home » Santa Clarita News » Crime » Antonovich Calls For More Support For Crime Victims Owed Restitution
With Proposition 47, California voters lessened the penalties for drug possession charges and theft-related charges, prompting different reactions from law enforcement and drug treatment experts.
Los Angeles County is trying to see if those who commit misdemeanors can be held just as accountable to their victims as felony law-breakers, according to a motion Tuesday.

Antonovich Calls For More Support For Crime Victims Owed Restitution

Los Angeles County is trying to see if those who commit misdemeanors can be held just as  accountable to their victims as felony law-breakers, according to a motion Tuesday.


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The county is trying to preserve restitution for crime victims, after voters once again approved a ballot measure — this time, Prop 57 — which has made it more difficult for the courts to collect from criminals.

The increasing rate of recidivism since voters passed Proposition 47 in 2014, combined with the fact voters have once again lessened the penalties for many crimes — Prop 47 reduced nearly all drug and theft charges to misdemeanors — have hampered efforts by county officials to help victims.

Supervisor Michael Antonovich proposed the motion after in response to a report ordered in April that looked at how the voter-approved statutory crime reductions in Prop 47 were impacting probation and restitution, ahead of Prop 57.

“The public was very misled by proponents of Proposition 47 just as we were all misled by AB 109 when the governor told us that the probation department would be supervising “low level” offenders,” said Supervisor Michael – fact is, nearly 70 percent of that population is high risk or very high risk – less than 2 percent are low-level offenders,” said Antonovich.

According to the Secretary of State’s breakdown, Prop 57:

Allows parole consideration for nonviolent felons. Authorizes sentence credits for rehabilitation, good behavior, and education. Provides juvenile court judge decides whether juvenile will be prosecuted as adult. Fiscal Impact: Net state savings likely in the tens of millions of dollars annually, depending on implementation. Net county costs of likely a few million dollars annually. (The cost is expected to have  been garnered from the anticipated savings from Prop 47.)

Last month, the district attorney issued a report in response to the board’s April 12 motion seeking information concerning victims of Proposition 47.

“The supervisor is very concerned about victims,” said Antonovich spokesman Tony Bell, “and we are working to ensure that victims of felonies and misdemeanors receive support and restitution.”

County supervisors approved Tuesday expanding the mandate for the Restitution Taskforce to include collection of restitution from misdemeanant, and to look at the feasibility of such a move.

Antonovich requested the D.A’s Office: identify the number of victims impacted by Proposition 47; ensure that victims receive advance notification about upcoming resentencing matters/hearings in order to preserve their right to be heard; and, identify any barriers that prevent victims from exercising their rights, as well as potential services or support to alleviate those barriers, according to the report.

The data revealed more than 335,000 cases, and over 627,000 charges where victims may have suffered losses requiring restitution.

The report also identifies a critical obstacle for victims — the collection of court ordered restitution in misdemeanor cases. Marsy’s Law, which includes the constitutional right to court ordered restitution for victims of crime, does not distinguish felony from misdemeanor. Thus, all victims, regardless of level of crime, are eligible for court-ordered restitution.

This obstacle impacts more victims post-Proposition 47 because certain property crimes are no longer felonies, which impacts the restitution process for victims, according to the county report.

Law enforcement officials are expected to report back to the county Board of Supervisors at an upcoming meeting, once the data has been collected and analyzed.

 

KHTS AM 1220 - Santa Clarita Radio

Antonovich Calls For More Support For Crime Victims Owed Restitution

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.