AB 233

Under current law, a person who commits certain crimes by using or

threatening to use a dangerous weapon or an article used or fashioned in a manner

that the victim believes is a dangerous weapon is subject to greater penalties than

the person would be if he or she committed the crime without using a dangerous

weapon.

Under this bill, a person is subject to the same penalties as he or she would be

under current law for using a dangerous weapon if the person commits a crime using

a facsimile firearm. A "facsimile firearm" is defined as any replica, toy, starter pistol,

or other object that bears a reasonable resemblance to or that reasonably can be

perceived to be an actual firearm.

Current law also prohibits a person from carrying or displaying a facsimile

firearm in a way that would alarm, intimidate, threaten, or terrify another person.

Anyone who does so is subject to a Class C forfeiture and may be required to pay a

forfeiture not to exceed $500.

This bill increases that penalty to a Class A misdemeanor and a person who

violates the provision may be fined up to $10,000, imprisoned for up to nine months,

or both.

Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime,

the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a

report concerning the proposed penalty and the costs or savings that are likely to

result if the bill is enacted.