Orange County District Attorney-backed Mental Health Diversion Legislation, AB 46, Becomes State Law,

Restoring Judicial Discretion to Deny Mental Health Diversion to Protect Public Safety

SANTA ANA - Assembly Bill 46, which closes legal loopholes in California's mental health diversion law by restoring common sense judicial discretion and ensuring the program provides treatment while protecting community safety, was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom Monday.

AB 46, authored by Assemblymember Stephanie Nguyen (D-Elk Grove), was sponsored by the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office and co-sponsored by many district attorney's offices across the state, including the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

AB 46 closes gaps in California's mental health diversion statute which severely limited the ability of judges to deny diversion in cases involving defendants who posed a serious risk to public safety.

Mental health diversion, created under Penal Code section 1001.36, was designed to provide treatment opportunities for defendants whose mental illness significantly contributed to the commission of a crime. Recent court rulings significantly narrowed judicial discretion, resulting in instances across California where judges were required to grant diversion despite significant concerns about public safety, inadequate treatment plans, or prior unsuccessful treatment efforts.

AB 46 restores judicial authority to consider whether a defendant poses a substantial and undue risk to the physical safety of another person and whether a proposed treatment plan is clinically appropriate to address the mental health condition which contributed to the crime. The legislation also reinforces the consideration of the constitutional rights of victims under Marsy's Law throughout mental health diversion proceedings.

"Judges have an absolute obligation to protect public safety, and AB 46 provides our judicial officers with the discretion they need to be able to protect the public when there is a clear and present danger to public safety," said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. "This is a significant step toward curing California's broken mental health system, and ensuring mental illness is not being allowed to be used an escape from accountability for criminal behavior. Thank you to Assemblymember Nguyen for championing this fight on behalf of law enforcement and prosecutors across California and ensuring the voices of victims continue to be heard and public safety continues to be protected."

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