AB 223

Current law prohibits a person from possessing a firearm if he or she is a felony

offender. A person is a felony offender if any of the following applies: 1) he or she

has been found guilty of a felony; 2) he or she has been adjudicated delinquent as a

juvenile for an act that would have been a felony if it had been committed by an adult;

or 3) he or she has been found not guilty of a felony by reason of mental disease,

defect, or illness. If a felony offender violates the prohibition against possessing a

firearm, he or she may be fined not more than $25,000 or imprisoned for not more

than ten years, or both.

This bill prohibits, for a specified period, certain felony offenders from

possessing, controlling, or residing with a vicious dog, as determined by a humane

officer or a law enforcement officer using criteria specified in the bill. The prohibition

applies to persons whose status as felony offenders is based on the commission of an

act that is classified under the bill as a serious felony (serious felony offenders). A

serious felony offender who violates the prohibition may be fined up to $10,000 or

imprisoned for up to nine months, or both. If a serious felony offender violates the

prohibition and a person or an animal suffers great bodily harm or death due to the

violation, the serious felony offender may be fined up to $10,000 or imprisoned for

up to three years and six months, or both. If a serious felony offender violates the

and a person suffers great bodily harm or death due to the violation and the serious

felony offender knowingly allowed the dog to run loose or failed to take steps to

control the dog, the serious felony offender may be fined up to $10,000 or imprisoned

for up to six years, or both.

Unless the serious felony offender is on extended supervision or another

supervised status (extended supervision), the prohibition applies to the serious

felony offender for a period of ten years following: 1) any period of incarceration for

the serious felony; 2) the conviction for the serious felony if the sentence does not

include a period of incarceration; 3) the delinquency adjudication for the serious

felony; or 4) the finding of not guilty of the serious felony by reason of insanity or

mental disease, defect, or illness. If the serious felony offender is on extended

supervision, the prohibition period applies until he or she is no longer on extended

supervision.

Under this bill, a serious felony offender may request an exemption from the

prohibition if the exemption is reasonably needed to earn a livelihood or as a

condition of employment and will not endanger public safety. A serious felony

offender seeking an exemption must file a motion in the circuit court for the county

in which he or she will possess, control, or reside with the vicious dog. The serious

felony offender must provide a copy of the motion to the district attorney for that

county, who must in turn make a reasonable attempt to contact local law enforcement

agencies to inform them of the request and to solicit any information that may be

relevant to whether the request should be granted.