SECTIONS 13952-13954 - California Statutes

GOVERNMENT CODE

SECTION 13952-13954

13952. (a) An application for compensation shall be filed with the
board in the manner determined by the board.
(b) (1) The application for compensation shall be verified under
penalty of perjury by the individual who is seeking compensation, who
may be the victim or derivative victim, or an individual seeking
reimbursement for burial, funeral, or crime scene cleanup expenses
pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 13957. If the individual
seeking compensation is a minor or is incompetent, the application
shall be verified under penalty of perjury or on information and
belief by the parent with legal custody, guardian, conservator, or
relative caregiver of the victim or derivative victim for whom the
application is made. However, if a minor seeks compensation only for
expenses for medical, medical-related, psychiatric, psychological, or
other mental health counseling-related services and the minor is
authorized by statute to consent to those services, the minor may
verify the application for compensation under penalty of perjury.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision, "relative caregiver" means a
relative as defined in subdivision (i) of Section 6550 of the Family
Code, who assumed primary responsibility for the child while the
child was in the relative's care and control, and who is not a
biological or adoptive parent.
(c) (1) The board may require submission of additional information
supporting the application that is reasonably necessary to verify
the application and determine eligibility for compensation.
(2) The staff of the board shall determine whether an application
for compensation contains all of the information required by the
board. If the staff determines that an application does not contain
all of the required information, the staff shall communicate that
determination to the applicant with a brief statement of the
additional information required. The applicant, within 30 calendar
days of being notified that the application is incomplete, may either
supply the additional information or appeal the staff's
determination to the board, which shall review the application to
determine whether it is complete.
(d) (1) The board may recognize an authorized representative of
the victim or derivative victim, who shall represent the victim or
derivative victim pursuant to rules adopted by the board.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision, "authorized representative"
means any of the following:
(A) An attorney.
(B) If the victim or derivative victim is a minor or an
incompetent adult, the legal guardian or conservator, or an immediate
family member, parent, or relative caregiver who is not the
perpetrator of the crime that gave rise to the claim.
(C) A victim assistance advocate certified pursuant to Section
13835.10 of the Penal Code.
(D) An immediate family member of the victim or derivative victim,
who has written authorization by the victim or derivative victim,
and who is not the perpetrator of the crime that gave rise to the
claim.
(E) Other persons who shall represent the victim or derivative
victim pursuant to rules adopted by the board.
(3) Except for attorney's fees awarded under this chapter, no
authorized representative described in paragraph (2) shall charge,
demand, receive, or collect any amount for services rendered under
this subdivision.

13952.5. (a) An emergency award shall be available to a person
eligible for compensation pursuant to this chapter if the board
determines that such an award is necessary to avoid or mitigate
substantial hardship that may result from delaying compensation until
complete and final consideration of an application.
(b) The board shall establish the method for requesting an
emergency award, which may include, but need not be limited to,
requiring submission of the regular application as provided for in
Section 13952.
(c) (1) The board may grant an emergency award based solely on the
application of the victim or derivative victim. The board may refuse
to grant an emergency award where it has reason to believe that the
applicant will not be eligible for compensation under this chapter.
(2) By mutual agreement between the staff of the board and the
applicant or the applicant's representative, the staff of the board
may take additional 10-day periods to verify the emergency award
claim and make payment.
(3) The board may delegate authority to designated staff persons
and designated agencies, including, but not limited to, district
attorneys, probation departments, victim centers, and other victim
service providers approved by the board and under contract with the
board, who shall use guidelines established by the board, to grant
and disburse emergency awards.
(d) Disbursements of funds for emergency awards shall be made
within 30 calendar days of application.
(e) (1) If an application for an emergency award is denied, the
board shall notify the applicant in writing of the reasons for the
denial.
(2) An applicant for an emergency award shall not be entitled to a
hearing before the board to contest a denial of an emergency award.
However, denial of an emergency award shall not prevent further
consideration of the application for a regular award and shall not
affect the applicant's right to a hearing pursuant to Section 13959
if staff recommends denial of a regular award.
(f) (1) If upon final disposition of the regular application, it
is found that the applicant is not eligible for compensation from the
board, the applicant shall reimburse the board for the emergency
award pursuant to an agreed-upon repayment schedule.
(2) If upon a final disposition of the application, the board
grants compensation to the applicant, the amount of the emergency
award shall be deducted from the final award of compensation. If the
amount of the compensation is less than the amount of the emergency
award, the excess amount shall be treated as an overpayment pursuant
to Section 13965.
(3) "Final disposition," for the purposes of this section, shall
mean the final decision of the board with respect to the victim's or
derivative victim's application, before any action for judicial
review is instituted.
(g) The amount of an emergency award shall be dependent upon the
immediate needs of the victim or derivative victim subject to rates
and limitations established by the board.

13953. (a) An application for compensation shall be filed within
one year of the date of the crime, one year after the victim attains
18 years of age, or one year of the time the victim or derivative
victim knew or in the exercise of ordinary diligence could have
discovered that an injury or death had been sustained as a direct
result of crime, whichever is later. An application based on any
crime eligible for prosecution under Section 801.1 of the Penal Code
may be filed any time prior to the victim's 28th birthday.
(b) The board may for good cause grant an extension of the time
period in subdivision (a). In making this determination, the board
may consider any relevant factors, including, but not limited to, all
of the following:
(1) A recommendation from the prosecuting attorney regarding the
victim's or derivative victim's cooperation with law enforcement and
the prosecuting attorney in the apprehension and prosecution of the
person charged with the crime.
(2) Whether particular events occurring during the prosecution or
in the punishment of the person convicted of the crime have resulted
in the victim or derivative victim incurring pecuniary loss.
(3) Whether the nature of the crime is such that a delayed
reporting of the crime is reasonably excusable.
(c) The period prescribed in this section for filing an
application by or on behalf of a derivative victim shall be tolled
when the board accepts the application filed by a victim of the same
qualifying crime.

13954. (a) The board shall verify with hospitals, physicians, law
enforcement officials, or other interested parties involved, the
treatment of the victim or derivative victim, circumstances of the
crime, amounts paid or received by or for the victim or derivative
victim, and any other pertinent information deemed necessary by the
board. Verification information shall be returned to the board within
10 business days after a request for verification has been made by
the board. Verification information shall be provided at no cost to
the applicant, the board, or victim centers. When requesting
verification information, the board shall certify that a signed
authorization by the applicant is retained in the applicant's file
and that this certification constitutes actual authorization for the
release of information, notwithstanding any other provision of law.
If requested by a physician or mental health provider, the board
shall provide a copy of the signed authorization for the release of
information.
(b) The victim and the applicant, if other than the victim, shall
cooperate with the staff of the board or the victim center in the
verification of the information contained in the application. Failure
to cooperate shall be reported to the board, which, in its
discretion, may reject the application solely on this ground.
(c) The board may contract with victim centers to provide
verification of applications processed by the centers pursuant to
conditions stated in subdivision (a). The board and its staff shall
cooperate with the Office of Criminal Justice Planning and victim
centers in conducting training sessions for center personnel and
shall cooperate in the development of standardized verification
procedures to be used by the victim centers in the state. The board
and its staff shall cooperate with victim centers in disseminating
standardized board policies and findings as they relate to the
centers.
(d) Notwithstanding Section 827 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code or any other provision of law, every law enforcement and social
service agency in the state shall provide to the board or to victim
centers that have contracts with the board pursuant to subdivision
(c), upon request, a copy of a petition filed in a juvenile court
proceeding, reports of the probation officer, any other document made
available to the probation officer or to the judge, referee, or
other hearing officer, a complete copy of the report regarding the
incident, and any supplemental reports involving the crime, public
offense, or incident giving rise to a claim, for the specific purpose
of the submission of a claim or the determination of eligibility to
submit a claim filed pursuant to this chapter. The board and victim
centers receiving records pursuant to this subdivision may not
disclose a document that personally identifies a minor to anyone
other than the minor who is so identified, his or her custodial
parent or guardian, the attorneys for those parties, and any other
persons that may be designated by court order. Any information
received pursuant to this section shall be received in confidence for
the limited purpose for which it was provided and may not be further
disseminated. A violation of this subdivision is a misdemeanor
punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500).
(e) The law enforcement agency supplying information pursuant to
this section may withhold the names of witnesses or informants from
the board, if the release of those names would be detrimental to the
parties or to an investigation in progress.
(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, every state
agency, upon receipt of a copy of a release signed in accordance with
the Information Practices Act of 1977 (Chapter 1 (commencing with
Section 1798) of Title 1.8 of Part 4 of Division 3 of the Civil Code)
by the applicant or other authorized representative, shall provide
to the board or victim center the information necessary to complete
the verification of an application filed pursuant to this chapter.
(g) The Department of Justice shall furnish, upon application of
the board, all information necessary to verify the eligibility of any
applicant for benefits pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 13956,
to recover any restitution fine or order obligations that are owed
to the Restitution Fund or to any victim of crime, or to evaluate the
status of any criminal disposition.
(h) A privilege is not waived under Section 912 of the Evidence
Code by an applicant consenting to disclosure of an otherwise
privileged communication if that disclosure is deemed necessary by
the board for verification of the application.
(i) Any verification conducted pursuant to this section shall be
subject to the time limits specified in Section 13958.