Accountability, Empathy, and Equity for Traffic Stops Passes Committee

Sacramento, CA –Today, Assemblymember Chris Holden’s bill, Traffic or pedestrian stops: notification by peace officers, a measure which require the department to include information regarding the duty of a peace officer to state the reason for the stop in the handbook at the earliest opportunity when the handbook is otherwise revised or reprinted, Assembly Bill 2773, passed the Assembly Committee on Public Safety.

“We owe the public the service we have promised,” said Assemblymember Chris Holden. “AB 2773 aims to step forward with our commitment to the public in mind.”

Current law provides that, except as otherwise provided by statute, all relevant evidence is admissible. The California Constitution provides for the Right to Truth-In-Evidence, which requires a 2/3 vote of the Legislature to exclude any relevant evidence from any criminal proceeding, as specified.

This bill would require a peace officer making a traffic or pedestrian stop, before asking any questions, to state the reason for the stop, unless the officer reasonably believes that withholding the reason for the stop is necessary to protect life or property from imminent threat. The bill would require the officer to document the reason for the stop on any citation or police report resulting from the stop. By requiring a higher level of service from local law enforcement, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would make the failure of the peace officer to make the required statement grounds for filing a motion to suppress.

“Protecting our public is crucial to thriving communities,” said Holden.  

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