California Penal Code 3703 – (a) On decision of a petition filed pursuant to Section 3701, …
(a) On decision of a petition filed pursuant to Section 3701, the court shall issue a statement explaining the legal and factual basis for the decision.
(b) If the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the incarcerated person is competent to be executed, the court shall deny the petition.
Terms Used In California Penal Code 3703
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See California Penal Code 7
- will: includes codicil. See California Penal Code 7
(c) If the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the incarcerated person is permanently incompetent to be executed within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 3701, the court shall vacate the sentence or sentences of death and resentence the incarcerated person to life without the possibility of parole.
(d) In a proceeding under subdivision (a) of Section 3701, if the court finds that the incarcerated person is incompetent to be executed, but does not find by a preponderance of the evidence that competence is unlikely to be restored, the court shall order the warden to suspend the execution and order that the incarcerated person be taken to a medical facility of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and be kept in safe confinement until their competence to be executed is restored. If the prosecuting agency alerts the court that it believes the incarcerated person’s competence has been restored, the court shall again initiate the procedure set forth in Section 3700 and hold a hearing. In that hearing, the prosecution bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the incarcerated person is competent to be executed.
(e) The decision denying or granting the petition will be subject to review under Section 1509.1. An appeal from a decision under this chapter shall not be considered successive, nor shall it render any subsequent appeals successive within the meaning of Section 1509.1.
(Repealed and added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 795, Sec. 9. (AB 2657) Effective January 1, 2023.)