AB 180

Under current law, when a court makes a sentencing decision concerning a

person convicted of a criminal offense, the court must consider the protection of the

public, the gravity of the offense, the rehabilitative needs of the defendant, and any

applicable mitigating factors or aggravating factors to the crime. Under current law,

an offense may be aggravated by the circumstances under which the offense took

place, such as delivery of a controlled substance to a prisoner or on a public transit

vehicle, by the nature of the victim, such as when an elderly person is victimized, or

by the nature of the offender, such as when a person who is responsible for a child's

welfare commits an offense against the child.

Under this bill, when a court makes a sentencing decision concerning a person

who is a military veteran and has been diagnosed as suffering from post-traumatic

stress disorder resulting from the person's military service, the court may consider

that as a mitigating factor.