(a) If the district attorney or Attorney General stipulates to or does not contest the factual allegations underlying one or more of the grounds for granting a writ of habeas corpus or a motion to vacate a judgment, the facts underlying the basis for the court’s ruling or order shall be binding on the Attorney General, the factfinder, and the California Victim Compensation Board.

(b) The district attorney shall provide notice to the Attorney General no fewer than seven days before entering into a stipulation of facts that will be the basis for the granting of a writ of habeas corpus or a motion to vacate a judgment. A response from the Attorney General is not required to proceed with the stipulation.

Terms Used In California Penal Code 1485.5

  • Habeas corpus: A writ that is usually used to bring a prisoner before the court to determine the legality of his imprisonment. It may also be used to bring a person in custody before the court to give testimony, or to be prosecuted.
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the district and territories. See California Penal Code 7
  • will: includes codicil. See California Penal Code 7
  • Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
  • writ: signifies an order or precept in writing, issued in the name of the people, or of a court or judicial officer, and the word "process" a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See California Penal Code 7

(c) In a contested or uncontested proceeding, the express factual findings made by the court, including credibility determinations, during proceedings on a petition for habeas corpus, a motion to vacate judgment pursuant to Section 1473.6, or an application for a certificate of factual innocence, shall be binding on the Attorney General, the factfinder, and the California Victim Compensation Board.

(d) For the purposes of this section, “express factual findings” are findings established as the basis for the court’s rulings or orders.

(e) For purposes of this section, “court” is defined as a state or federal court.

(Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 702, Sec. 2. (SB 78) Effective January 1, 2024.)