Bill seeks more prison time for felons with past hate crime convictions

California prosecutors would be able to seek increased prison sentences for accused felons who have prior hate crime convictions under proposed legislation introduced in the Assembly.

The measure, AB 266, marks the second time in four years Assemblymember Jim Cooper, D-Elk Grove, has sought to expand California’s hate crime laws. Under the proposal introduced last week, Penal Code Section 667.5, the statute that enumerates the violent felonies which can be charged as strikes under California’s three strikes law, would be amended to include hate crimes. The change would allow prosecutors to charge prior hate crime convictions as strikes when prosecuting people accused of violent felonies.

Notably, the measure has no early sponsors or co-authors.

Some prosecutors questioned Wednesday whether the bill was drafted in response to policies put forth by so-called progressive prosecutors, such as Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, that have scaled back or eliminated the use of sentence enhancement charges. Gascon recently amended his policy prohibiting enhancement charges to allow deputy DAs to charge hate crimes as enhancements, but only with permission from their superiors. Cooper’s measure, prosecutors in Los Angeles County said, would be a welcome change, though they noted it’s unclear if they’ll be able to allege hate crimes as strikes under Gascon’s policies if the bill becomes law.

“Hate crimes affect not only the victim, hate crimes affect the community as a whole,” said Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney John Hatami. “Feeling like you are nothing — it’s a horrible feeling. It breaks people and communities. I’m all for adding hate crimes to the violent felony list.”

Cooper, a former Sacramento County sheriff’s captain, has been a vocal opponent of measures that have aimed to reduce incarceration levels in the state, most recently fighting against SB 10, the law that eliminated cash bail statewide in 2018 but was overturned when it went to the voters last November.

Allison Zuvela, president of California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, a statewide group of private and public defense attorneys that has a robust legislative committee, said Cooper’s AB 266 is a step in the wrong direction.

“There are already hate crimes on the books,” Zuvela said in an email Wednesday. “There is already punishment for those crimes on the books. It is fair to say we will strongly oppose this outdated effort to increase punishment in the face of overwhelming evidence that this punitive approach to criminal justice issues ultimately make us less safe, while doing irreparable harm to families and communities.”

Cooper, a member of the Assembly Select Committee on Hate Crimes, has joined other lawmakers in recent years in drafting legislation that aimed to strengthen the state’s hate crimes laws. In 2017, he co-authored a bill with Jay Obernolte, R-Big Bear Lake, that would have included police officers in the list of groups who are protected by the statutes. However, that bill, AB 2, failed on a 4-2 vote in the Assembly Public Safety Committee in March 2017 following opposition from several civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union.

Lawmakers are considering another hate crime bill this legislative session. AB 57, written by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, D-Woodland Hills, aims to strengthen hate crime protections in California by requiring law enforcement to receive improved training and education. That measure also has no sponsors or co-authors.

AB 266 will be up for a hearing in mid-February, according to the Legislature’s website.

A spokesperson for California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said he was reviewing the proposal.

Cooper’s administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Requests for comment sent to the California District Attorneys Association were not responded to by press time Wednesday.