The 4th District Court of Appeal ruled Thursday a state law that reduces sentences and charges for some crimes applies to youth and adults alike.
The ruling stems from a San Diego case in which District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis held that Proposition 47 did not apply to juveniles.
That meant minors could potentially get charges harsher than those doled out to adults for the same crime. It also meant that while thousands of California adults saw their felonies reduced to misdemeanors this year, juveniles' felony records remained intact.
Dumanis had said Proposition 47 only applied to adults because language used in the law is specific to the adult criminal justice system. Whereas adults are "convicted" and given a "sentence," minors are "adjudicated" and given a "disposition."
The court ruled the benefits of the law should extend to both youth and adults because, "they are judged by the same criminal code as adults," the Associated Press reported.
"The drafters (of the law) never intended that the law would be applied narrowly and have the result – the absurd result – that the law would be treating juveniles more harshly than it treats adults," said Hillary Blout, an attorney with Californians for Safety and Justice, a nonprofit focused on criminal justice reform that campaigned for the ballot initiative.
The court also ruled juveniles who see their felonies reduced to misdemeanors under Prop. 47 are entitled to have any of their DNA collected as a result of the charges destroyed.
"For individuals that are arrested and booked and prosecuted for misdemeanors, they are not included in the database," Blout said. "It's important that when people are able to have a felony removed from their records and a misdemeanor in its place, that it be a misdemeanor for all purposes."
In April, the authors of Proposition 47 and the American Civil Liberties Union challenged Dumanis' interpretation in an amicus brief.
"There is no rational basis — much less a compelling one — to saddle minors alone with severe criminal histories," the brief states. "A minor who is adjudicated a felon is more likely to be unfairly stigmatized, subjected to enhanced criminal penalties, turned down for jobs, rejected from military service, denied admission to college, and placed at risk in immigration proceedings."
They filed the brief on behalf of 76 minors who applied to have their sentences reduced under Prop. 47. Dumanis denied their requests, and a local judge upheld her position.
It's unclear if the District Attorney's Office will appeal Thursday's ruling. It provided the following statement.
“The District Attorney’s Office will review the court’s ruling and determine whether or not to appeal it. We support a juvenile justice system that has a goal of rehabilitation focused on providing the care, treatment and guidance in the best interest of minors. The District Attorney’s office is committed to keeping as many kids out of the criminal justice system as possible by working with law enforcement, the Probation Department and the Courts to expand opportunities for diversion with proper rehabilitation services.”
Earlier this year, a judge cleared up a similar dispute in Contra Costa County. There, prosecutors were unsure whether Prop. 47 applies to individuals whose felonies are the results of plea deals. The judge ruled the law does apply to such cases.
