California · Penal Code

PEN §1387.1: (a) Where an offense is a violent felony, as defined in Section 667.

Felony

What this law says, in plain English

This statute permits prosecutors one additional opportunity to refile charges in violent felony cases where two prior dismissals resulted from excusable neglect, provided the prosecution did not act in bad faith.

Read the full statutory text

(a) Where an offense is a violent felony, as defined in Section 667.5 and the prosecution has had two prior dismissals, as defined in Section 1387, the people shall be permitted one additional opportunity to refile charges where either of the prior dismissals under Section 1387 were due solely to excusable neglect. In no case shall the additional refiling of charges provided under this section be permitted where the conduct of the prosecution amounted to bad faith. (b) As used in this section, “excusable neglect” includes, but is not limited to, error on the part of the court, prosecution, law enforcement agency, or witnesses.

Verify at the official source: California legislative text

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This page is legal information, not legal advice. Code text is sourced from official publications and may lag amendments — always confirm at the official source linked above. Plain-English summaries and relationship data are AI-derived and reviewed on an ongoing basis; verify with a licensed attorney before acting.