Criminal Justice

CRIMINAL JUSTICE. INITIATIVE STATUTES AND CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. Amends Constitution and enacts several statutes concerning procedural treatment, sentencing, release, and other matters for accused and convicted persons. Includes provisions regarding restitution to victims from persons convicted of crimes, right to safe schools, exclusion of relevant evidence, bail, use of prior felony convictions for impeachment purposes or sentence enhancement, abolishing defense of diminished capacity, use of evidence regarding mental disorder, proof of insanity, notification and appearance of victims at sentencing and parole hearings, restricting plea bargaining, Youth Authority commitments, resentencing of persons previously committed as mentally disordered sex offenders, and other matters. Fiscal impact on state and local governments: The proposed measure contains several provisions that would have fiscal impacts on state and local programs. The Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance advise that they are unable to determine the net costs at this time but indicate that the measure would result in substantial increases in state and local expenditures