AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 8, 2023
SENATE BILL No. 44
Introduced by Senator Senators Umberg and Ochoa Bogh
(Principal coauthors: Senators Caballero, Portantino, Roth, and Stern)
(Coauthors: Senators Alvarado-Gil, Archuleta, Becker, Blakespear, Dodd, Glazer, Grove, Jones, Min, Newman, Niello, Nguyen, Seyarto, and Wilk)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Alanis, Bennett, Chen, Davies, Dixon, Essayli, Gallagher, Grayson, Lackey, Low, Mathis, Stephanie Nguyen, Joe Patterson, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Ta, Villapudua, Weber, and Wood)
December 5, 2022
An act to add Section 11369 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to controlled substances.
legislative counsel’s digest
SB 44, as amended, Umberg. Controlled substances.
Existing law makes it a crime to possess for sale or purchase for purpose of sale, transport, import, sell, furnish, administer, give away, manufacture, compound, convert, produce, derive, process, or prepare various controlled substances, including, among others, fentanyl, peyote, and various other opiates and narcotics.
This bill bill, Alexandra’s Law, would require the court to advise a person who is convicted of, or who pleads guilty or no contest to, the above crimes to receive a written advisory crimes, as specified, of the danger of manufacturing or distribution of controlled substances selling or administering illicit drugs and counterfeit pills and that, if a person dies as a result of that action, the manufacturer or distributor defendant
98 can be charged with voluntary manslaughter or murder. homicide. The bill would require the court to read the advisory statement in a case in which the defendant e xchanged a contr olled substance containing fentanyl or its analogs for anything else of value, as specified. The bill would require the advisory statement to be included in a plea form, if used, and specified on the r ecord. The bill would require that the fact the advisory was given be on the record and recorded on in the abstract of conviction. conviction and would prohibit the advisement from being used as evidence in the prosecution of a minor in juvenile court.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
line 1 SECTION 1. Section 11369 is added to the Health and Safety line 2 Code, to read:
line 3 11369. (a) This section shall be known, and may be cited, as line 4 Alexandra’s Law.
line 5 (b) The court shall advise a person who is convicted of, or who line 6 pleads guilty or no contest to, a violation of Section 11351, 11352, line 7 11352 for tr ansporting, importing , selling , or administering a line 8 controlled substance , of fering to tr ansport, import, sell, or line 9 administer a contr olled substance , or attempting to tr ansport, line 10 import, sell, or administer a contr olled substance , or 11379.6 line 11 11379.6, where the substance contained fentanyl or a fentanyl line 12 analog, of the following:
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line 14 “You are hereby advised that the illicit manuf acture or line 15 distribution of controlled substances, either real or counterfeit, line 16 inflicts a grave health risk to those who ingest or are e xposed to line 17 them. It is extremely dangerous to human life to manuf acture or line 18 distribute real or counterfeit controlled substances. If you do so, line 19 and a person dies as a result of that action, you can be char ged line 20 with voluntary manslaughter or murder.”
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line 23 “You are hereby advised that all illicit drugs and counterfeit line 24 pills are dangerous to human life and become even deadlier when line 25 they are, sometimes unknowingly, mixed with substances such as line 26 fentanyl and analogs of fentanyl. People can and have died from 98 — 2 — SB 44
line 1 these substances, e ven in very small doses. It is e xtremely line 2 dangerous and deadly to human life to sell or administer drugs, line 3 in any form, when not lawfully authorized to do so. If you do so line 4 in the future and a person dies as a result of that action, you may line 5 be charged with homicide, up to and including the crime of murder, line 6 within the meaning of Section 187 of the Penal Code.” line 7
line 8 The court shall additionally r ead the advisory statement in a line 9 case in whic h the per son e xchanged a contr olled substance line 10 containing fentanyl or its analogs for anything else of value except line 11 when the controlled substance containing fentanyl or its analogs line 12 is exchanged for a controlled substance or alcohol. line 13 (c) The advisory statement shall be provided to the defendant line 14 in writing, either on the plea form or after sentencing, and included line 15 in a plea form, if used, or the fact that the advisory was given shall line 16 be specified on the record and recorded in the abstract of the line 17 conviction. record.
line 18 (d) The fact that the advisory was given shall be r ecorded in line 19 the abstract of the conviction.
line 20 (e) This advisement may not be used as e vidence in the line 21 prosecution of a minor in juvenile court.
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