What Are Valid Parole Residency Restrictions?

As one can certainly understand if one has been a victim of or witness to a serious or violent felony, or lost a family member due to criminal conduct of another person, the State of California is mindful of creating distance between the crime victim, witness and a person on parole. It is for the safety of both the victim and the parolee.

Under California law, a parolee will not be returned to an area within 35 miles of the home of a victim of or witness to a violent offense, upon request by a crime victim or witness, if the CDCR finds that there is a need to protect the person’s life, safety, or well-being.

Similarly, a parolee will not be placed within 35 miles of the home or job location of a stalking victim, upon request by a crime victim or witness, if the CDCR finds that there is a need to protect the victim’s life, safety, or well-being. Penal Code § 3003(f), (h).

California law also provides that people convicted of violating Penal Code § 288 (lewd or lascivious acts with a minor under age 16) or Penal Code § 288.5 (continuous sexual abuse of a minor under age 14) and whom the CDCR determines pose a high risk to the public cannot live within one half mile of any school for children in kindergarten through 12th grade. Penal Code § 3003(g).

Those who are required to register as sex offenders under Penal Code § 290 also are prohibited from living together in a single family dwelling unless related by blood or marriage. Penal Code § 3003.5(a); 15 CCR § 3571(b). A residential facility serving six or more residents is not considered a single family dwelling.

A parolee who is required to register as a sex offender due to a crime against a minor may not reside (except as a client) in a child day care facility or residential facility or a foster family home. Penal Code § 3003.6.

From November 2006 to March 2015, there was a California law which forbade any person who registered as a sex offender from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park where children regularly gathered. Penal Code § 3003.5(b). The State has taken the position that those residency restriction applied only while people with sex-related offenses are on parole (not probation or PRCS). People v. Mosley (2015) 60 Cal. 4th 1044, 185 Cal. Rptr. 3d 251. Such residency provisions did not apply to people who were convicted prior to November 8, 2006 and paroled prior to that date. Doe v. Schwarzenegger (E.D. Cal. 2007) 476 F. Supp. 2d 1178; In re E.J. (2010) 47 Cal. 4th 1258, 1272-1273, 104 Cal. Rptr. 3d 165.

However, the California Supreme Court held that placing such residency restrictions on every person on parole convicted of sex-related offenses violated the constitutional Fourteenth Amendment due process right to be free of unreasonable, arbitrary and oppressive official action. In re Taylor (2015) 60 Cal. 4th 1044, 184 Cal. Rptr. 3d 682. The CDCR, however, still has authority to impose special conditions of parole on a case-by-case basis, including residency restrictions. Id.

The CDCR’s policy is to impose residency parole conditions on a case-by-case basis based on the particular circumstance of each individual person on parole. Any restriction that will bar a person from residing within any distance of a park, K-12 school, or other location must be justified by a connection between the person’s offense, criminal history, and/or likelihood of future offenses. 15 CCR § 3571; 15 CCR § 3582. On a case by case basis, people may have a special condition prohibiting them from residing with a particular child. 15 CCR § 3571(f).

The CDCR has standard procedures for enforcing residency requirements. 15 CCR §§ 3571-3590.3. When a person is paroled, the parolee must tell the parole agent where they plan to live. A parolee also must give the parole agent notice before moving to a new address. The parole agent will then verify whether the residence is far enough away from a school or park to comply with any statutory or individualized residency restriction. The distance will be measured with a GPS device, and using the straight-line distance between the main entrance of the residence and the exterior boundary of the nearest park or school, not the driving or walking distance. 15 CCR § 3571(e); 15 CCR § 3582(e); see People v. Christman (2014) 229 Cal. App. 4th 810, 75 Cal. Rptr. 3d 884 (upholding straight-line measurement method).

A parolee who is listed as transient (without permanent housing) may stay at locations which have no street addresses, such as bridges, encampments and bus stops, without violating the residency restriction, unless the CDCR imposes special conditions of parole limiting access to such locations. See 15 CCR § 3590.2. However, spending even one or two days or nights in a shelter or structure that can be located by an address (such as a building or a car parked in a certain spot) can establish that location as a “residence” if circumstances “appear to establish a pattern of residency.” 15 CCR §§ 3590-3590.3.

A parolee who is subject to residency restrictions may work in businesses that are within the restricted areas if they have permission from their parole agent. A parolee may also be allowed to regularly enter places in order to charge their GPS device, conduct business, or receive treatment without being considered to have established a “residence” there. 15 CCR § 3590.1.

Parole agents have been instructed to make exceptions to the residency rules for parolees with mental illness and housed in a licensed mental health facility or are in need of medical care in a licensed facility with 24-hour supervision. Parole agents are supposed to seek a decision from the Director of the DAPO on whether the parolee may stay in that facility until care is no longer needed.

Lastly, parolees should be aware that cities, towns and counties may adopt their own ordinances imposing restrictions on where they can live or go. Penal Code § 3003(c). Some of these types of laws may be subject to appeal for violating constitutional due process or other rights.

We wish to thank the Prison Law Office for their wonderful treatise, California Prison and Parole Law Handbook, which this article draws most of its information.