Bill > AB1917

This bill, known as the Respect Judicial Decisions Act, modifies the process by which district attorneys can file criminal charges, specifically concerning "informations," which are formal accusations of a crime. Previously, a district attorney had discretion to charge a defendant with offenses named in a commitment order or any offense supported by preliminary hearing evidence; this bill restricts that discretion, requiring that an information only charge offenses explicitly named in the commitment order. If a prosecutor wishes to charge an offense that was dismissed by a magistrate during a preliminary hearing (a hearing to determine if there's enough evidence to proceed to trial), they must first file a motion in superior court to reinstate that dismissed offense. If this motion is granted, the prosecutor can then file an amended information including the reinstated charges. The bill also clarifies that this motion to reinstate can be made even if only individual counts of an offense were dismissed. These changes are intended to ensure that judicial decisions to dismiss charges are respected, and by imposing new duties on prosecutors, the bill acknowledges it may create state-mandated local programs, with provisions for reimbursement if state costs are determined.

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1917