Courts say Prop 36 creates treatment option but strains judges, staff and treatment capacity

The Assembly Budget Subcommittee heard detailed testimony from courts and judicial advisers about early implementation of Proposition 36, which created a treatment‑mandated offense for repeat drug possession and altered penalties for certain drug and theft crimes.

Rick Owen, senior staff counsel for the Committee on Revision of the Penal Code, summarized the law and its core features, saying Prop 36 “created a treatment mandated felony offense for drug possession” that applies when a person arrested for possession has two or more prior drug convictions and that the charge is a “wobbler” a prosecutor may file as a misdemeanor or felony. Owen explained that defendants who accept treatment must plead guilty or no contest, undergo court‑ordered assessment by a drug addiction expert, and may have their case dismissed on successful completion of a court‑ and prosecutor‑approved program.

Francine Byrne, director of Criminal Justice Services for the Judicial Council, told the subcommittee the Judicial Council surveyed 49 counties (representing roughly 98% of the state population) and estimates courts will receive about 25,000 Prop 36 cases annually. Byrne cautioned the subcommittee that courts are only a…