(a) Notwithstanding any other section in the Act, a person who was convicted before January 1, 1976, under subdivision (a) of Section 286, or former Section 288a, shall not be required to register pursuant to the Act for that conviction if the conviction was for conduct between consenting adults that was decriminalized by Chapter 71 of the Statutes of 1975 or Chapter 1139 of the Statutes of 1976. The Department of Justice shall remove that person from the California Sex Offender Registry, and the person is discharged from the person’s duty to register pursuant to either of the following procedures:
(1) The person submits to the Department of Justice official documentary evidence, including court records or police reports, that demonstrate that the person’s conviction pursuant to either of those sections was for conduct between consenting adults that was decriminalized.
(2) The person submits to the department a declaration stating that the person’s conviction pursuant to either of those sections was for consensual conduct between adults that has been decriminalized. The declaration shall be confidential and not a public record, and shall include the person’s name, address, telephone number, date of birth, and a summary of the circumstances leading to the conviction, including the date of the conviction and county of the occurrence.
(b) The department shall determine whether the person’s conviction was for conduct between consensual adults that has been decriminalized. If the conviction was for consensual conduct between adults that has been decriminalized, and the person has no other offenses for which the person is required to register pursuant to the Act, the department shall, within 60 days of receipt of those documents, notify the person that the person is relieved of the duty to register, and shall notify the local law enforcement agency with which the person is registered that the person has been relieved of the duty to register. The local law enforcement agency shall remove the person’s registration from its files within 30 days of receipt of notification. If the documentary or other evidence submitted is insufficient to establish the person’s claim, the department shall, within 60 days of receipt of those documents, notify the person that the person’s claim cannot be established, and that the person shall continue to register pursuant to the Act. The department shall provide, upon the person’s request, any information relied upon by the department in making its determination that the person shall continue to register pursuant to the Act. Any person whose claim has been denied by the department pursuant to this subdivision may petition the court to appeal the department’s denial of the person’s claim.
(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 497, Sec. 193. (AB 991) Effective January 1, 2020.)