The following new laws, which became effective at the beginning of this year, demonstrate the California legislatures' practice of leaving no stone unturned in their effort to quash domestic violence:

1) 24 Hour Relinquish of Firearms With Restraining Orders

The amount of time that a person served with a restraining order has to turn in firearms to the police has been shortened. Now the subject must relinquish the firearm within 24 hours of service, regardless of his or her presence at the hearing. The subject must also file a "surrender receipt" within 48 hours (rather than 72 hours) after receiving the order. (California Code of Civil Procedure, Section 527.9(b).)

Comment: The problem with this law is that there is usually no supervision by the police of the offender to turn in the firearms immediately after a domestic violence incident. Once the offender is booked into jail, the police lose sight of him/her. Consequently, a person who bails out and is crazy enough to shoot another person will not be deterred by this section.

2) Substitute Mailing Address for Victims of Domestic Violence

Under current law, domestic violence and stalking victims may use an address designated by the Secretary of State as a substitute mailing address and for service process, in order to allow state and local agencies to avoid disclosing the victims' whereabouts or changed names when responding to requests for public records. This law was due to expire on January 1, 2008, but new legislation extends the date for expiration until January 1, 2013. (California Government Code, Section 6211.)

Comment: This law will probably have no impact on cases where the perpetrator and victim have children together, and the perpetrator has been awarded visitation rights, since keeping the children's address secret is almost impossible.

3) Reimbursement for Victims of Domestic Violence

Prior to this year, the law allowed for reimbursement for up to $1,000 in security improvements to the victim's residence (if the crime occurred there) that is necessary for the victim's safety or well-being. This law has been modified to also allow home-security reimbursement for someone who lived with the victim at the residence where the crime took place, if the victim has died. In addition, this code as amended, authorizes reimbursement for necessary relocation expenses for only one victim per crime (rather than once to any victim); however, that victim may receive reimbursement for more than one relocation, as long as it's necessary and the total relocation reimbursement for the crime doesn't exceed the $2,000 limit. (California Government Code, Section 13957(a)(8).)

A new subsection was also added to this code which authorizes reimbursement for certain clean-up expenses after a crime (not just a crime that resulted in the victim's death). (California Government Code, Section 13957(a)(10).)

Finally, as a pilot program operative until January 1, 2010, an amendment to the law adds a new authorization to reimburse child-care expenses that a crime victim or a derivative victim had to incur after the victim's injury or death, if the victim was the children's primary caretaker. (California Government Code, Section 13957(a)(11).)

Comment: Providing the victim of a domestic violence crime with financial aid is very considerate of the hardship that victims of domestic violence endure as a result of these crimes. Unfortunately, victims are not likely to receive the money when they need it most, i.e., immediately after the incident, since collecting from the perpetrator is going to be a problem in most cases. On the other hand, this law can be viewed as an added punishment to those who commit domestic violence.

4) Employers Authorized to Seek Protective Orders on Behalf of Employees

Employers are now authorized to seek restraining orders (at the court's discretion) on behalf of other employees, in addition to the one who has experienced the violence or threats. (California Code of Civil Procedure, Section 527.8.)

The amendment to our law also adds that there will not be a fee for a subpoena filed in connection with a petition under the statute or for service of process of a TRO (temporary restraining order) or an injunction that is based on stalking or a credible threat of violence. (California Code of Civil Procedure, Section 527.8 (p).)

Comment: This new law seems to be designed to protect the workplace from domestic violence. Employers are now able to seek domestic violence restraining orders rather than civil harassment restraining orders which are more difficult to obtain. These hearings may be interesting, however, since domestic violence restraining orders typically involve family law issues (e.g., child custody, child support, and spousal support). Would you want your boss getting involved or being present during a hearing where your personal matters are being discussed in open court?

ANALYSIS

The goal of these new laws is pretty obvious. We hope that they will tighten down on domestic violence by affording victims more protection and making offenders pay a greater price for their crimes. It is also our hope that these new laws will have a meaningful impact on family relationships and decrease the number of incidents where children are witnesses and victims of domestic violence.

On the other hand, as these new laws become increasingly tougher on the accused it is more and more important that we train our professionals who deal with these cases (i.e., the police, prosecutors, and judges), to exercise common sense and caution before turning the screws. After all, there will always be a certain percentage of cases where false allegations are made or where the incident warrants discretionary application of the law.