On September 9, 2010, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 1844, also known as the Chelsea King Child Predator Prevention Act of 2010 or Chelsea’s Law. This legislation was introduced by Assembly Member Nathan Fletcher (R-San Diego) in collaboration with the King family in response to the murder of their 17-year-old daughter Chelsea by registered sex offender John Albert Gardner. Gardner has pleaded guilty to the murder of both Chelsea King and 14-year-old Amber Dubois, both resided in the San Diego area. Many provisions were recommendations from the CA Sex Offender Management Board which is chaired by Robert Coombs, CALCASA’s Director of Public Affairs.
Brief overview of AB 1844 (Chelsea’s Law) provisions:
Penalty Enhancements:

Sex Offender Management

  • §3008: Establishes containment model managing  all high risk offenders as determined by SARATSO
  • §13887: Counties may establish sexual assault felony enforcement (SAFE) teams and legislative findings thereof.
  • §290.04: State-Authorized Risk Assessment Tool for Sex Offenders (SARATSO) Review Committee shall evaluate static, dynamic, and risk of future violence tools to be used statewide by supervision and treatment professionals
  • §290.09: California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) shall certify sex offender management programs and professionals used by parole and probation departments; certified sex offender management professionals shall communicate with probation and parole officers on a regular basis; SARATSO will provide annual training on dynamic assessment tools
  • §290.46: Department of Justice shall make available to the public, via Megan’s Law Website, the static and future risk score of an offender
  • §1203.067: Mandate sex offender treatment for offenders currently on probation
  • §2962: Clarifies mental health and civil commitment evaluations procedures
  • §3053.8(a): Registered sex offenders who have been imprisoned for a crime against a victim under 14-years-old, as a condition of parole, shall not enter into a park where children regularly congregate without express permission of parole office

Victim Services:

  • Revenue & Taxation §18846.3: Removed the sunset date for the California Sexual Violence Victim Services Fund that was set to expire at the end of 2010.