Title PEN — California Penal Code

(a) (1) The Legislature finds and declares that the purpose of sentencing is public safety and to reduce recidivism achieved through punishment, rehabilitation, and restorative justice. When a sentence includes incarceration, the deprivation of liberty satisfies the punishment pu…

A prisoner is not eligible for resentence or recall pursuant to Section 1172.2 if they were convicted of first-degree murder, if the victim was a peace officer, as defined in Section 830.1, 830.2, 830.3, 830.31, 830.32, 830.33, 830.34, 830.35, 830.36, 830.37, 830.4, 830.5, 830.6,…

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation may offer a program under which inmates, as specified in subdivision (c), who are not precluded by subdivision (d), and who have been committed to state prison may be allowed to p…

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, a sheriff or a county director of corrections is authorized to offer a program under which inmates as specified in subdivision (c), who are not precluded by subdivision (d), and who have been committed to a county jail may be allowed to particip…

(a) Except as otherwise provided by law, and subject to Section 654, when any person is convicted of two or more felonies, whether in the same proceeding or court or in different proceedings or courts, and whether by judgment rendered by the same or by a different court, and a co…

As used in Section 1170.1, the term “specific enhancement” means an enhancement that relates to the circumstances of the crime. It includes, but is not limited to, the enhancements provided in Sections 186.10, 186.11, 186.22, 186.26, 186.33, 192.5, 273.4, 289.5, 290.4, 290.45, 29…

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, if a defendant has been convicted of a felony and it has been pled and proved that the defendant has one or more prior serious or violent felony convictions, as defined in subdivision (b), the court shall adhere to each of the following: (1) The…

(a) Notwithstanding Section 2 of Proposition 184, as adopted at the November 8, 1994, statewide general election, for all offenses committed on or after November 7, 2012, but before January 1, 2024, all references to existing statutes in Sections 1170.12 and 1170.126 are to those…

(a) The resentencing provisions under this section and related statutes are intended to apply exclusively to persons presently serving an indeterminate term of imprisonment pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (e) of Section 667 or paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of Section …

(a) A person who is committed to a state hospital after being found not guilty by reason of insanity pursuant to Section 1026 may petition the court to have his or her maximum term of commitment, as established by Section 1026.5, reduced to the length it would have been had Secti…

Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 1170.1 which provides for the imposition of a subordinate term for a consecutive offense of one-third of the middle term of imprisonment, if a person is convicted pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 139, the subordinate term for each …

Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 1170.1 which provides for the imposition of a subordinate term for a consecutive offense of one-third of the middle term of imprisonment, if a person is convicted of a felony, and of an additional felony that is a violation of Section 13…

In lieu of the term provided in Section 1170.1, a full, separate, and consecutive term may be imposed for each violation of subdivision (a) of Section 192, whether or not the offenses were committed during a single transaction.

(a) A person who, on November 5, 2014, was serving a sentence for a conviction, whether by trial or plea, of a felony or felonies who would have been guilty of a misdemeanor under the act that added this section (“this act”) had this act been in effect at the time of the offense …

(a) In the case of any inmate who committed a felony prior to July 1, 1977, who would have been sentenced under Section 1170 if he or she had committed it after July 1, 1977, the Board of Prison Terms shall determine what the length of time of imprisonment would have been under S…

A conviction for a violation of Section 647f as it read on December 31, 2017, is invalid and vacated. All charges alleging violation of Section 647f are dismissed and all arrests for violation of Section 647f are deemed to have never occurred. An individual who was arrested, char…

(a) A person who is serving a sentence as a result of a violation of Section 647f as it read on December 31, 2017, whether by trial or by open or negotiated plea, may petition for a recall or dismissal of sentence before the trial court that entered the judgment of conviction in …

The Judicial Council shall seek to promote uniformity in sentencing under Section 1170 by: (a) The adoption of rules providing criteria for the consideration of the trial judge at the time of sentencing regarding the court’s decision to: (1) Grant or deny probation. (2) Impose th…

The Judicial Council shall collect and analyze relevant information relating to sentencing practices in this state and other jurisdictions. Such information shall be taken into consideration by the Judicial Council in the adoption of rules pursuant to Section 1170.3.

The Judicial Council shall collect data on criminal cases statewide relating to the disposition of those cases according to the race and ethnicity of the defendant, and report annually thereon to the Legislature beginning no later than January 1, 1999. It is the intent of the Leg…

The Judicial Council shall conduct annual sentencing institutes for trial court judges pursuant to Section 68551 of the Government Code, toward the end of assisting the judge in the imposition of appropriate sentences.

Robbery or attempted robbery for the purpose of obtaining any controlled substance, as defined in Division 10 (commencing with Section 11000) of the Health and Safety Code, when committed against a pharmacist, pharmacy employee, or other person lawfully possessing controlled subs…

The fact that a person who commits a violation of Section 288 has used obscene or harmful matter to induce, persuade, or encourage the minor to engage in a lewd or lascivious act shall be considered a circumstance in aggravation of the crime in imposing a term under subdivision (…

Upon conviction of a violation of Section 11353, 11353.5, 11353.7, 11354, 11361, or 11380 of the Health and Safety Code, or a finding of truth of an enhancing allegation pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 11353.1, Section 11353.6, or paragraph (3) of subdivis…

Upon conviction of a felony violation of Section 11377, 11378, or 11378.5 of the Health and Safety Code, the court shall consider the quantity of controlled substance involved in determining whether to impose an aggravated term under subdivision (b) of Section 1170.

Upon conviction of a felony violation of Section 11377, 11378, 11379, or 11379.6 of the Health and Safety Code, for an offense involving methamphetamine, the fact that the controlled substance is the crystalline form of methamphetamine shall be considered a circumstance in aggrav…

The fact that a defendant who commits or attempts to commit a violation of Section 243.4, 245, or 273.5 is or has been a member of the household of a minor or of the victim of the offense, or the defendant is a marital or blood relative of the minor or the victim, or the defendan…

Upon a conviction of a violation of Section 451, the fact that the person committed the offense in retaliation against the owner or occupant of the property or structure burned, or against one believed by the person to be the owner or occupant of the property or structure burned,…

(a) The fact that a robbery or an assault with a deadly weapon or instrument or by means of any force likely to produce great bodily injury was committed against a person while that person was in a church, synagogue, or building owned and occupied by a religious educational insti…

The fact that the intended victim of an attempted life term crime was a peace officer, as described in subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 830.1, or Section 830.2, 830.5 or 830.6, while the peace officer was engaged in the performance of his or her duties, and the defendant knew …

Upon a conviction of a violation of Section 11352, 11360, 11379, or 11379.5 of the Health and Safety Code, the fact that the person who committed the offense knew, or reasonably should have known, that any of the following circumstances existed with regard to the person to whom h…

Upon conviction of any serious felony, listed in subdivision (c) of Section 1192.7, it shall be considered a circumstance in aggravation of the crime in imposing a term under subdivision (b) of Section 1170 if, during the course of the serious felony, the person engaged in the ty…

(a) Upon conviction of any felony assault or battery offense, it shall be considered a circumstance in aggravation of the crime in imposing a term under subdivision (b) of Section 1170 if the offense was committed to prevent or dissuade a person who is or may become a witness fro…

Upon conviction of a felony violation of Section 220, 261, 261.5, 264.1, or 266j the fact that the felony was committed within a safe school zone, as defined in subdivision (c) of Section 626, against a victim who was a pupil currently attending school, shall be considered a circ…

Where there is an applicable triad for an enhancement related to the possession of, being armed with, use of, or furnishing or supplying a firearm, set forth in Section 12021.5, 12022, 12022.2, 12022.3, 12022.4, 12022.5, or 12022.55 the fact that a person knew or had reason to be…

(a) In the case of any person convicted of a criminal offense who could otherwise be sentenced to county jail or state prison and who alleges that the person committed the offense as a result of sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abus…

(a) If the court concludes that a defendant convicted of a felony offense is, or was, a member of the United States military who may be suffering from sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, or mental health problems as a result of …

(a) For the purposes of this section, “postconviction proceeding” means a proceeding to modify a sentence or conviction pursuant to an ameliorative statute. Ameliorative statutes include, but are not limited to, Sections 1170.18, 1172.1, 1172.6, 1172.7, and 1172.75. (b) On or bef…

(a) The County Resentencing Pilot Program (pilot) is hereby established to support and evaluate a collaborative approach to exercising prosecutorial resentencing discretion pursuant to Section 1172.1. Participants in the pilot shall include a county district attorney’s office, a …

(a) (1) When a defendant, upon conviction for a felony offense, has been committed to the custody of the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation or to the custody of the county correctional administrator pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, the court…

(a) Notwithstanding any other law and consistent with paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 1170, if the statewide chief medical executive, in consultation with other clinical executives, as needed, determines that an incarcerated person satisfies the medical criteria set f…

(a) A person convicted of felony murder or murder under the natural and probable consequences doctrine or other theory under which malice is imputed to a person based solely on that person’s participation in a crime, attempted murder under the natural and probable consequences do…

(a) Any sentence enhancement that was imposed prior to January 1, 2018, pursuant to Section 11370.2 of the Health and Safety Code, except for any enhancement imposed for a prior conviction of violating or conspiring to violate Section 11380 of the Health and Safety Code is legall…

(a) Any sentence enhancement that was imposed prior to January 1, 2020, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 667.5, except for any enhancement imposed for a prior conviction for a sexually violent offense as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 6600 of the Welfare and Institut…