A Blizzard of 747 New Laws Affect California Residents, and the State's Attorneys
| Jurisdiction | California,United States |
| Citation | Vol. 01 No. 2011 Pg. 01 |
| Pages | 01 |
| Publication year | 2011 |
CBJ - January 2011 #01. A blizzard of 747 new laws affect California residents, and the state's attorneys
January 2011
Staff Writer
As Californians celebrated the new year this month with hopes for better economic times, hundreds of new laws, including laws dealing with an expedited jury trial option, online impersonators and tailgating paparazzi, quietly went into effect.
Marijuana possession in small amounts is now an infraction, not a misdemeanor. Medical marijuana buyers' clubs and dispensaries must be located at least 600 feet away from any K-12 school. The threshold for a grand theft charge rose to $950, up from $400. And Feb. 6 of every year is now officially Ronald Reagan Day in California.
In all, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed 747 bills into law last year at a time when lawmakers were struggling with budget woes and more than 2 million Californians remained unemployed.
Some of the laws have already taken effect, such as a recently signed bill prohibiting the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors. Others go into effect later. For example, teens in California's foster care system, who often wind up on their own at age 18, will soon be eligible for extended support and benefits up to age 21, if they meet certain criteria, under legislation to be phased in from 2012 to 2014. California Supreme Court Justice Carlos R. Moreno, who chairs a blue ribbon commission on children in foster care, suggested that many of California's most vulnerable young people now face "much brighter" futures as a result of "this historic legislation."
In the wake of the commission's recommendations for improvements in the foster care system, other recent legislation aims to keep siblings together and allows youngsters to stay in the same school even if they are moved to new foster homes.
The Expedited Jury Trials Act (AB 2284), which also took effect this month, could change the very nature of civil disputes in California and reduce the cost of a simple jury trial by as much as 80 percent. Modeled after similar quick trial options offered in New York and South Carolina, such expedited jury trials will be heard, on a date certain, before a judge and jury of eight. Each side will be limited to three peremptory challenges and will have to present their case and arguments...
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