Ashburn carries ‘Dylan’s Law’
Ashburn carries ‘Dylan’s Law’
By: Courtesy of the office of Senator Roy Ashburn
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Posted by editor Tue Nov 30, 1999 00:00:00 PST
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0 responses 0 comments Senator Roy Ashburn (R-Bakersfield) was joined at a news conference recently by Bakersfield sexual assault victim Dylan Pardo and Dave LaBahn of the California District Attorney Association in support of Senate Bill 1626, prior to the bill’s hearing before the Senate Public Safety Committee.
Ashburn’s bill was written to prevent judges from issuing the lenient sentence of “Deferred Entry of Judgment” to minors who have committed a felony sexual assault. In such cases, the juvenile is placed on probation from one to three years. Upon successful completion of probation the records are sealed and the conviction is dismissed.
Additionally, the bill specifies that a juvenile court may order GPS monitoring of any juvenile offender in custody or on probation.
Ashburn introduced Dylan’s law in response to the case of Dylan Pardo, who was drugged and sexually assaulted at the age of 14. The 17-year-old perpetrator of the assault pled guilty to five felony counts of sexual assault and was sentenced by the judge to “Deferred Entry of Judgment.”
“Felony sexual assault is one of the most appalling crimes a person can commit,” said Ashburn. “Letting rapist felons off with a slap on the wrist is simply intolerable and I don’t care how old they are. If they are old enough to commit these kinds of crimes, they are old enough to understand how wrong and deplorable their behavior is.”
“I am grateful to Senator Ashburn for his ongoing efforts to address this injustice. What happened to me is something I would never wish on anyone,” said Dylan.
“If we can pass a law to keep dangerous juvenile sexual predators in custody for a time, then maybe we can prevent this from happening to someone else. I will have to live with what happened to me for the rest of my life. Is it too much to ask that the attackers spend a few years in custody thinking over what they have done?” Dylan concluded.
Ashburn presented SB 1626 as scheduled, however, due to the absence of several committee members the bill did not receive enough votes to pass out of the committee. The bill will be taken up again on Tuesday, April 25.
Senator Ashburn represents the 18th Senate District, including Tulare, Kern, Inyo and San Bernardino counties.
Feedback? Senator Ashburn is eager to hear from you. Email: Senator.Ashburn@sen.ca.gov
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