California Welfare and Institutions Code

§ 6608

WIC § 6608 Effective Jan 1, 2023Div. 6 · Part 2 · Ch. 2 · Art. 4

Statute text

(a)A person who has been committed as a sexually violent predator shall be permitted to petition the court for conditional release with or without the recommendation or concurrence of the Director of State Hospitals. If a person has previously filed a petition for conditional release without the concurrence of the director and the court determined, either upon review of the petition or following a hearing, that the petition was frivolous or that the committed person’s condition had not so changed that the person would not be a danger to others in that it is not likely that the person will engage in sexually violent criminal behavior if placed under supervision and treatment in the community, the court shall deny the subsequent petition unless it contains facts upon which a court could find that the condition of the committed person had so changed that a hearing was warranted. Upon receipt of a first or subsequent petition from a committed person without the concurrence of the director, the court shall endeavor whenever possible to review the petition and determine if it is based upon frivolous grounds and, if so, shall deny the petition without a hearing. The person petitioning for conditional release under this subdivision shall be entitled to assistance of counsel in all hearings under this section. The person petitioning for conditional release shall serve a copy of the petition on the State Department of State Hospitals at the time the petition is filed with the court.

(b)The procedure for a conditional release hearing in a case where the county of domicile has not yet been determined shall be as follows:

(1)If the court deems the petition not frivolous pursuant to subdivision (a), the court shall give notice to the attorney designated in subdivision (i) of Section 6601, the retained or appointed attorney for the committed person, and the Director of State Hospitals of its intention to set a conditional release hearing. The person petitioning for conditional release, the Director of State Hospitals, and the designated attorney of the county of commitment shall notify the court within 30 court days of receipt of this notice if it appears that a county other than the county of commitment may be the county of domicile.

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Legislative history

Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 880, Sec. 1. (SB 1034) Effective January 1, 2023.