California Victim Compensation Board
Open Meeting Minutes
January 31, 2024, Board Meeting
The California Victim Compensation Board (Board) convened its meeting in open session upon the call of the Chair, Gabriel Ravel, General Counsel of the Government Operations Agency, acting for, and in the absence of Amy Tong, Secretary of the Government Operations Agency, at 400 R Street, Room 330, Sacramento, California, on Wednesday, January 31, 2024, at 10:06 a.m. Also, present was Member Evan Johnson, acting for, and in the absence of, Malia Cohen, Controller. Appearing via Zoom was Member Diana Becton, District Attorney.
Executive Officer Lynda Gledhill, and Chief Counsel Kim Gauthier attended in person at 400 R Street, Sacramento, California. Board Liaison, Andrea Burrell, was also present and recorded the meeting.
Item 1. Approval of the Minutes of the November 16, 2023, Board Meeting
Member Johnson moved approval of the Minutes for the November 16, 2023, Board Meeting. The motion was seconded by Member Becton. By a unanimous vote of the Board, the motion passed.
Item 2. Approval of the Minutes of the December 20, 2023, Board Meeting
Member Johnson moved approval of the Minutes for the December 20, 2023, Board Meeting. The motion was seconded by Member Becton. By a unanimous vote of the Board, the motion passed.
Item 3. Public Comment
The Board opened the meeting for public comment and Ms. Burrell reminded everyone that, consistent with the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act, items not on the agenda may not be discussed at this time but may be put on a future agenda. (Gov. Code, § 11125.7.)
Margaret Petros appeared via Zoom regarding Item number 4 under closed session. She asked that the Board members use discretion and allow wage loss for the claimant. She stated her disagreement with the process and not knowing what the proposed decision is before the Board meeting. She believes the wage loss should have been approved three years ago if the right and caring attention was given to the claimant. She stated the claimant provided multiple documents, including her medical history for 10 years. The claimant has already been approved for eligibility, but she really needs the income loss to be approved.
Ms. Petros continued, noting the claimant filed a Writ of Mandate and there were errors made by staff and she worked with the Attorney General’s Office to put a stay on the court case. There was a CalVCB hearing held; however, Ms. Petros felt like the Hearing Officer was set on denying the claim. In fact, the Hearing Officer obtained a copy of the victim’s credit report. Ms. Petros stated she had never heard of that before and was informed that it happens often.
Ms. Petros concluded by asking the CalVCB to use discretion and to look into this matter carefully.
Chair Ravel thanked Ms. Petros for her comments and noted that the claimant also submitted a written comment to the Board members.
Item 4. Executive Officer Statement
Executive Officer Gledhill updated the Board on a few items:
To start, Ms. Gledhill noted that California is facing a significant budget deficit. In December, the Department of Finance issued a budget letter requiring departments to take immediate action to reduce current year expenditures. The CalVCB took immediate steps to identify cost savings and make adjustments. For example, canceling plans for non-essential travel, and canceling attendance at several conferences and meetings. Also, the CalVCB has been working with its partners to transition to virtual outreach unless events are local and no-cost.
The CalVCB also anticipates that there will be reductions in the amount of money received from the general fund to backfill the restitution fund. The historical imbalance of the restitution fund largely ties to the decline in State Penalty Fund revenues and changes to how funds were disbursed. Revenues from the State Penalty Fund equaled $53 million in 2008-09 but have been set at $6.5 million each year since 2018-19. Concerns about the solvency of the restitution fund led the Legislature to provide general fund backfills that totaled $39.5 million in the 2022-23 budget year.
Ms. Gledhill continued, stating the Budget team is working closely with the Department of Finance to ensure the path forward will not impact the CalVCB’s ability to compensate victims of violent crime. The CalVCB has sufficient reserves at this time to ensure continuity of services and operations as a result of the proposed elimination of the General Fund backfill.
Ms. Gledhill also reported that the outreach campaign contract is underway.
Ms. Gledhill reminded the Board that the Forced or Involuntary Sterilization Compensation Program ended on December 31, 2023. In total, the CalVCB received 566 applications, 51 of which we received shortly before the end of the program and are being reviewed for eligibility. The individuals will go through the eligibility process and if needed will also have an opportunity to appeal.
The CalVCB issues payments to sterilization survivors as soon as possible and has until the end of September 2024 to issue all payments. This timeline will allow the CalVCB to complete the appeal process for the new applications received before the end of the program.
CalVCB also received the final report from the contractor used for media outreach to potential sterilization victims. The CalVCB invested about $200,000 into ads on cable TV, radio, and social media in regions across the state. This content has been seen or heard over 318 million times. Extra money was invested into Spanish advertisement in the Southern California region in December. The CalVCB is currently working on the Legislative report for this program and will share it with the Board along with any other significant updates.
Ms. Gledhill updated the Board on the 2024-25 Trauma Recovery Center (TRC) grant cycle. The CalVCB posted the Notice of Funds Available (NOFA) on the CalVCB website and the California Grants portal. The NOFA was also shared on social media and in external newsletters. The NOFA included comprehensive information about the application requirements, submission, and review procedures, budget requirements, and general terms and conditions.
Interested organizations had until January 22 to apply for funding. The CalVCB received 19 TRC applications and organizations requested a total of $35.8 million. In the last funding cycle, 15 TRCs was awarded $17.4 million. There is a limited amount of funding available to grant to TRCs and there is no statutory or other limit on the amount of funding that applicants can request. However, given the current budget situation, CalVCB is unsure as to how much money will be available in this grant cycle. The CalVCB will not be able to fund the total amount requested.
Ms. Gledhill noted that once a recommendation for funding levels is made by staff and adopted by the Board, grantees are advised of what amount the Board approved. Given the approved amounts may be less than amounts requested, grantees have the option to either accept or decline the grant. Grant agreements are then executed between the grantees and the CalVCB.
Ms. Gledhill concluded her report by reminding the Board that January 31 marked the end of Human Trafficking Prevention month. During this month the CalVCB celebrated the efforts of survivor advocates, anti-trafficking organizations, and law enforcement around the world. The CalVCB helped raise awareness about human trafficking.
The CalVCB posted a social media toolkit and shared it with its partners and stakeholders to spread the word about human trafficking prevention and resources for victims. The post was viewed over 2,500 times. Additionally, the outreach team provided information about human trafficking during presentations to community-based organizations.
Chairperson Ravel thanked Ms. Gledhill for the updates.
Item 5. Legislative Update
The Legislative Update was presented by Deputy Executive Officer Katie Cardenas.
Ms. Cardenas stated that the Legislature has reconvened and several bills that were introduced in 2023 were eligible to be advanced in January as two-year bills but failed the deadline. However, two key bills advanced to their second house last year and could be acted upon later this year.
- AB 1186 by Assembly Member Bonta would require the CalVCB to distribute paymentof juvenile restitution orders. This bill is on the Senate Inactive File and is eligible to beremoved from the file for a floor vote through the end of August.
- AB 997 by Assembly Member Gipson would require the CalVCB to compensate mental health services for individuals with successful erroneous conviction claims. The bill was held on the Suspense File in the Senate Appropriations Committee and is eligible to be reheard through August.
No new bills that would impact the CalVCB have yet been introduced. The introduction deadline for regular bills is February 16.
Chairperson Ravel thanked Ms. Cardenas for the updates.
Item 6. Contract Update
The Contract Update was presented by Deputy Executive Officer Shawn Ramirez.
Ms. Ramirez stated that the Contract Report was informational only and offered to answer any questions the Board had regarding the items listed in the report.
Chairperson Ravel thanked Ms. Ramirez for the update.
Item 7. Request for Authority to Conclude the Rulemaking Process for Amendments to the California Code of Regulations (Title 2, §§ 649.4, 649.7, 649.15, 649.16, 649.18, 649.19, 649.24, 649.28, and 649.50)
The Request for Authority to Conclude the Rulemaking Process for Amendments to the California Code of Regulations was presented by Senior Attorney Sara Harbarger.
Ms. Harbarger stated she is seeking authorization to complete the rulemaking process for the proposed regulatory changes. On January 19, 2023, the Board approved submitting the rulemaking calendar to begin the process of revising these regulations. On September 14, 2023, the Board authorized CalVCB staff to commence the rulemaking process for California Code of Regulations Title 2, sections 649.4, 649.7, 649.15, 649.16, 649.18, 649.19, 649.24, 649.28, and 649.50.
The public comment period commenced on September 29, 2023, and concluded on November 13, 2023. The CalVCB sent 11,342 emails and 28 letters to members of the public notifying them of the proposed modifications and the public comment period. CalVCB staff also held two public hearings, one on December 12, 2023, and the other on December 28, 2023. All comments that were presented during the public comment period as well as those provided at the public hearings were reviewed and considered by CalVCB staff. Based on this, CalVCB staff decided to remove section 649.4 from the regulation packet for further research and review.
The purpose of the changes in the eight regulations is to assist the public in understanding the requirements to obtain victim benefits and to increase transparency with all members of the public. Ms. Harbarger continued, stating that two of the regulations explain to the providers the process when the CalVCB discovers provider fraud or audit discrepancies.
Ms. Harbarger concluded by noting if the Board approves staff to complete the rulemaking process, then the regulations modification packet will be mailed to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for review and approval. If the OAL approves the amended regulations, they will then file them with the Secretary of State. The regulations may take effect on either April 1 or July 1, 2024, depending on the length of OAL’s review.
Chairperson Ravel asked Ms. Harbarger two questions:
- Were any comments expressed at the hearings that were not included in the public comments?
- Regarding the removal of section 649.4 for further consideration, is that a substantive change that would require a second comment period?
Ms. Harbarger responded that all comments that were made during the public hearing were summarized and put into the public comments section. For example, the comments made by Margaret Petros that are in the comment section were only provided orally during the public hearings. Ms. Harbarger confirmed that an additional public comment period was not required with the removal of section 649.4 and stated this approach was also confirmed with OAL.
Chairperson Ravel thanked Ms. Harbarger for her responses.
Member Johnson asked three questions:
- What was the intent of the changes to section 649.4 initially?
- What is the process moving forward and will there be a separate public process foropening up the regulations again and reconsidering changes to section 649.4 based onwhat the staff was trying to achieve and the public comments that came as a part ofthat?
- Will section 649.4 be under consideration within the next rulemaking package in a year or sooner?
Ms. Harbarger responded that the purpose behind the initial modifications to section 649.4 was to simplify and clarify the regulation as it was currently written. It was at times confusing for the public to navigate. Most of the comments were about subsection F where it states, “The Board shall not grant compensation to an applicant for any expenses incurred due to a victim’s death or injury while the victim is incarcerated in a correctional institution.” The concerns were that this is possibly not consistent statute. In order to provide CalVCB staff with sufficient time to research the legislative history, section 649.4 was pulled from this regulations packet. A form of section 649.4 will be a part of the next rulemaking package.
Finally, Ms. Harbarger stated the CalVCB is looking to bring additional regulations to the Board for modification at the September 2024 Board meeting.
Member Johnson thanked Ms. Harbarger.
Member Becton stated she is glad that the CalVCB pulled section 649.4 for a further review and that the plan is to bring it back to the Board for consideration. She states that it is an important issue that should be understood and to have all the information to make an informed decision.
Chairperson Ravel asked if Ms. Harbarger knew what other items were being considered for the regulation package for the September 2024 Board meeting?
Ms. Harbarger responded that the rulemaking calendar was submitted to OAL for the 2024 year. The goal is to bring three packages to the Board:
- The Penal Code section 4900 regulation updates, especially in light of the statutory changes that have occurred within the past year,
- The Good Samaritan Program, and
- Income Loss and Support Loss.
Ms. Harbarger concluded by stating those are the regulation goals for 2024 and noted there may be additional victim program regulations.
Chairperson Ravel thanked Ms. Harbarger.
Ms. Petros thanked the staff for their efforts regarding the two public hearings and speaking with the stakeholders. She stated her agreement with pulling section 649.4 for further review and noted the summary of comments provided was easy to follow. Finally, she noted that it would be her preference that any public hearings held on draft regulations be open and include a format for the public and/or stakeholders to ask questions that are answered in the hearing.
Chairperson Ravel thanked Ms. Petros for her comments.
Member Becton moved to approve staff’s conclusion of the rulemaking process for amendments to Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations, sections 649.7, 649.15, 649.16, 649.18, 649.19, 649.24, 649.28, and 649.50, excluding section 649.4. The motion was seconded by Member Johnson. By a unanimous vote of the Board, the motion passed.
Item 8. Cartier Hunter (Pen. Code, §§ 4900, et seq.)
The Penal Code section 4900 claim of Cartier Hunter was presented by Chief Counsel, Kim Gauthier.
On June 2, 2023, Cartier Hunter submitted an application as an erroneously convicted person to the California Victim Compensation Board, which was supplemented in June and August of 2023. The application is based on Mr. Hunter’s 2016 convictions for murder and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Both convictions were vacated by a writ of habeas corpus in February 2023 and the case was dismissed immediately thereafter without a finding of factual innocence.
As there was no objection to the claim filed by the Office of the Attorney General, compensation is automatic under Penal Code section 4900(b). The proposed decision recommends compensation in the amount of $449,990, which represents $140 per day for each of the 3,214 days Mr. Hunter was wrongfully imprisoned.
Mr. Hunter has been represented by attorney Lateef Gray of Pointer & Buelna, LLP and the Office of the Attorney General is represented by Deputy Attorney General Jessica Leal.
Chair Ravel requested we hear first from the attorney for Mr. Hunter.
Mr. Gray noted that Mr. Pointer was also present. Mr. Gray stated they had nothing to add unless needed.
Chair Ravel confirmed that Mr. Hunter was not present.
Chair Ravel requested to hear next from Ms. Leal.
Ms. Leal also stated she had nothing to add unless the Board had questions.
Chair Ravel thanked everyone for appearing at the meeting.
Member Becton moved to adopt the Hearing Officer’s proposed decision in the Penal Code section 4900 matter of Cartier Hunter. The motion was seconded by Member Johnson. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the Board and the proposed decision was adopted.
Item 9. Giovante Douglas (Pen. Code, §§ 4900, et seq.)
The Penal Code section 4900 claim of Giovante Douglas was presented by Chief Counsel, Kim Gauthier.
On June 2, 2023, Giovante Douglas submitted an application as an erroneously convicted person to the California Victim Compensation Board, which was supplemented in September of 2023. The application is based on his 2016 convictions for murder. Those convictions were vacated by a writ of habeas corpus in September 2022 and the case was dismissed immediately thereafter without a finding of factual innocence.
As there was no objection to the claim filed by the Office of the Attorney General, compensation is automatic under Penal Code section 4900(b). The proposed decision recommends compensation in the amount of $457,660, which represents $140 per day for each of the 3,269 days Mr. Douglas was wrongfully imprisoned.
Mr. Douglas has been represented by attorney Lateef Gray of Pointer & Buelna, LLP and the Office of the Attorney General is represented by Deputy Attorney General Jessica Leal.
Chair Ravel requested we hear first from the attorney for Mr. Douglas.
Mr. Gray stated that Items 8 and 9 are from the same criminal case and are related.
Chair Ravel thanked Mr. Gray for his comment.
Chair Ravel requested to hear next from Ms. Leal.
Ms. Leal also stated she had nothing to add unless the Board had questions.
Chair Ravel thanked everyone for appearing at the meeting.
Member Johnson moved to adopt the Hearing Officer’s proposed decision in the Penal Code section 4900 matter of Giovante Douglas. The motion was seconded by Member Becton. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the Board and the proposed decision was adopted.
Item 10. Giovanni Hernandez (Pen. Code, §§ 4900, et seq.)
The Penal Code section 4900 claim of Giovanni Hernandez was presented by Chief Counsel, Kim Gauthier.
On December 18, 2023, Giovanni Hernandez submitted an application as an erroneously convicted person to the California Victim Compensation Board, which was supplemented in late December of 2023. The application is based on his 2012 convictions for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and shooting at an unoccupied vehicle. Those convictions were vacated in June of 2023 pursuant to a grant of habeas corpus.
In December of 2023, the court granted the motion for a finding of factual innocence pursuant to Penal Code section 1485.55.
As mandated by the court order and pursuant to Penal Code section 1485.55 the proposed decision recommends compensation in the amount of $859,600, which represents $140 per day for each of the 6,140 days Mr. Hernandez was wrongfully imprisoned.
Mr. Hernandez has been represented by Marissa Harris, former supervising attorney at the Juvenile Innocence and Fair Sentencing Clinic at Loyola Law School and the Office of the Attorney General is represented by Deputy Attorney General Jessica Leal.
Chair Ravel requested we hear first from Ms. Harris.
Ms. Harris thanked the Board and stated they concur with the Hearing Officer’s proposed decision. She would like the Board to approve compensation for the 6,140 days Mr. Hernandez was incarcerated for a crime he did not commit.
Chair Ravel thanked Ms. Harris for her comments.
Chair Ravel confirmed that Mr. Hernandez did not want to address the Board.
Chair Ravel requested to hear next from Ms. Leal.
Ms. Leal also stated this claim fell under the automatic grant, so she had nothing further to add.
Chair Ravel thanked everyone for appearing at the meeting.
Member Johnson moved to adopt the Hearing Officer’s proposed decision in the Penal Code section 4900 matter of Giovanni Hernandez. The motion was seconded by Member Becton. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the Board and the proposed decision was adopted.
Closed Session
The Board adjourned into Closed Session with the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Counsel at 10:47 a.m. pursuant to Government Code section 11126, subdivision (c)(3) to deliberate on proposed decision numbers 1 through 96 of the Victim Compensation Program.
Open Session
The Board reconvened in Open Session pursuant to Government Code section 11126, subdivision (c)(3) at 11:45 a.m.
Chair Ravel noted on the record in response to Ms. Petros, that the written comment from claimant in Item 4 was considered by the Board’s in closed session.
Member Becton moved to approve items 1 through 96 excluding number 3 of the Victim Compensation Program. Member Johnson seconded the motion. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the Board and the proposed decisions were adopted.
Adjournment
Member Becton moved the adjournment of the January Board meeting. Member Johnson seconded the motion. The motion was approved by a unanimous vote of the Board and the meeting was adjourned at 11:47 a.m.
Next Board Meeting
The next Board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 21, 2024.