SAN FRANCISCO, CA — San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced that Governor Gavin Newsom has signed AB 1897, legislation co-sponsored by the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office and authored by Assemblymember Matt Haney to bring greater consistency and clarity to decisions about whether an offender with a severe mental health disorder presents a substantial danger of physical harm to others before being released.
The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office worked closely with Assemblymember Haney and his team from the initial drafting of AB 1897 through legislative negotiations, bringing the perspective and experience of prosecutors handling these complex cases to the legislative process.
AB 1897 requires mental health professionals conducting dangerousness evaluations to consider an individual’s history of violence related to their mental health disorder, along with their current mental status, recent behavior and response to treatment, ability to inflict physical harm, and other clinically relevant risk factors.
The legislation was developed following concerns highlighted by the case of Bill Gene Hobbs, who was convicted after repeatedly targeting women in San Francisco and later committed to Atascadero State Hospital as an offender with a mental health disorder.
When Hobbs challenged his commitment, clinicians agreed that he suffered from a severe mental health disorder that was not in remission but reached different conclusions about whether he continued to present a substantial danger of physical harm to others. A court ultimately ordered his release. Months later, Hobbs was again seen approaching and harassing women in San Francisco and was subsequently taken back into custody on an alleged parole violation.
The case underscored the need for greater consistency in how evaluators assess dangerousness and the factors considered before recommending that an individual be released.
“AB 1897 brings greater clarity to the assessment of whether a person with a severe mental health disorder presents a substantial danger of physical harm to others before being released. While there is room to improve as we work to address the Hobbs decision head on, the passage of AB 1897 is an important marker in standardizing the approach when assessing these types of cases across the state,” San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins continued. “This is a positive step toward incorporating public safety in decisions before recommending release.”
AB 1897 does not eliminate individualized evaluations or change the legal standard governing involuntary treatment. Instead, it establishes core factors that evaluators across California must consider, helping ensure that consequential release recommendations are informed by a consistent assessment of both an individual’s history and present circumstances.
“As prosecutors, we have a responsibility to protect public safety while ensuring that these serious decisions are grounded in the person’s actual circumstances and current risk,” said District Attorney Jenkins. “AB 1897 strikes that important balance. Our office was proud to co-sponsor this legislation and work side-by-side with Assemblymember Haney and his team.”
The legislation was developed with input from prosecutors, mental health professionals, stakeholders, and experts throughout the legislative process. That collaboration helped shape a framework intended to provide greater consistency in evaluations while maintaining due process protections and appropriate consideration of treatment and an individual’s current condition.
AB 1897 passed the California Legislature unanimously before being signed into law by Governor Newsom.
###