(Sacramento, CA) - Assemblymember Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) will present his anti-gang violence legislation package before the Assembly Public Safety Committee on Tuesday, April 24, 2007 at approximately 10am in room 126 of the State Capitol. One of two bills in the package is the Anti-Gang Violence Parental Accountability Act.

Anti-Gang Violence Parental Accountability Act
AB 1291, would allow juvenile court judges to send a probation officer to the home of a first-time violent offender, or parents of other at-risk defendants, to analyze whether the parents should be sent to Anti-Gang Violence Parenting Classes. It allows the judges to mandate that the classes be taken based on those reports or their own discretion.

The AGPA classes
AB 1291 also establishes an outline for the curriculum which would include:

1. teaching parents how to identify gang and drug activity in their kids,
2. how to communicate with adolescents,
3. an overview and the contacts for alcohol and drug abuse intervention agencies,
4. where and how to get educational support,
5. where to go for job training and positive recreational activities for youth,
6. a primer on the fines and lengths or incarceration which their children will be subjected to if convicted of further crimes,
7. and also the potential penalties to parents for hiding, aiding or abetting their own children when a crime is committed.

The program will be funded by requiring parents to pay for the classes. However, AB 1291 also establishes an alternative payment plan for the fees to be paid. The intent of AB 1291 is to serve as both an informational/educational service and a deterrent by requiring the parent’s time and fees.

Assemblymember Mendoza says, “We need to help parents take back control of their kids. There are many parents who want to keep their kids away from gangs but don't know where to turn for help. There are good parents whose kids, for some reason or another, commit violent crimes. AB 1291 allows judges and probation officers to exempt those families. Sadly, however, there are also parents who's own dependencies and other problems are so severe that they themselves are to blame for the kids seeking gangs. We need to break the cycle of gang activity in families and stop the revolving door of juvenile gang-members going in and out of jail. The Anti-Gang Parental Accountability Bill is a great first step because it's flexible enough for all family situations” “We must hold parents accountable for the actions of their children by requiring them to take parenting classes and pay for them. When someone drives drunk we send them to dependency classes, but when someone can’t control their kids, we look the other way. It’s time we not only require accountability but also step in to help,” he adds.

AB 1290 and 1291 are supported by the cities of Cerritos, Norwalk, Whittier, and Santa Fe Springs as well as Councilmembers from the cities of Artesia and Hawaiian Gardens.

Audio Files:

English:

• http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/Newsline/Audio/20070423AB1291Mendoza1.mp3
• http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/Newsline/Audio/20070423AB1291Mendoza2.mp3

Spanish:

• http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/Newsline/Audio/20070423AB1291Mendoza3.mp3
• http://democrats.assembly.ca.gov/Newsline/Audio/20070423AB1291Mendoza4.mp3