California Public Defenders Association pushed back on proposed diversion limits.
CALIFORNIA, USA — In a rare show of bipartisan support, a new bill moving through the California Legislature aims to tighten the state’s pretrial mental health diversion program by clarifying who qualifies, and who does not.
Republican Sen. Shannon Grove of Bakersfield says Senate Bill 1373 would add guardrails to the existing law, arguing the program has allowed some violent offenders to avoid lasting consequences.
“It did not come with enough guardrails and has become a get out of jail free card for the violent offenders across our state,” Grove said.
The bill would make people accused of certain high-risk violent crimes ineligible for diversion and require judges to have more information before approving placement in the program.
“Victims were physically attacked, assaulted, and some even murdered,” Grove said. “Their perpetrators received diversion and took a few classes, maybe some medication, and then within a year or two, everything was wiped from their record.”
If passed, SB 1373 would create a list of crimes that would prohibit someone from entering the program. Those include attempted murder, kidnapping and defendants with two prior felonies.
The proposal has bipartisan backing. Democratic Assemblymember Maggy Krell of Sacramento pointed to the volume of diversion petitions in her county.
“In Sacramento, almost 50% of cases defendants are petitioning for diversion on,” Krell said. “And another thing about the law is you’re only allowed to get diversion if a suitable placement exists.”
A similar proposal, Assembly Bill 46, would require a person with a mental disorder to have a diagnosis within five years before the alleged offense. Grove said she also supports that bill.
Not everyone agrees changes are needed.
The California Public Defenders Association argues the current program is working and affects only a small portion of people statewide. The group says judges already carefully weigh clinical recommendations and criminal history before approving diversion.
“A judge is not going to put somebody into community supervision, community supervised treatment, unless they have the recommendations from clinical experts, clinical psychologists, behavioral therapists, unless they’ve looked at their arrest records, they’ve looked at their past, they’ve looked at where they are now,” said Kate Chatfield with the association.
The group also says diversion helps prevent reoffending.
“In Los Angeles County, 91% of participants who graduate do not have new criminal cases filed,” Chatfield said.
The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office supports SB 1373. The office says it received more than 1,800 motions for mental health diversion in 2024, with 582 people entering the program. Of those, 210 defendants reoffended.
In 2025, the office reported receiving more than 1,300 motions for diversion, though those cases are still pending.
SB 1373 must still move through the Legislature before it can reach the governor’s desk.