1. The defence does not rest: Resisting the criminalization of HIV
Ayako Miyashita Ochoa, JD
UCLA, Luskin School of Public Affairs
California HIV/AIDS Policy Research Center

2. Preliminary Matters
Working Title? Decriminalizing HIV: How people living with HIV translated quantitative research into community action and legislative transformation
Who is this? Advocate and academic
Power? Struggle does not end with legislative success

3. Timeline of Events 2014: Gathering 2015: Researching 2016: Organizing
2017: Advocating
2018: Reflecting

4. Gathering National movement
National advocate, regional advocate, and research institute
No other statewide efforts
No major lobbying capacity signed onto efforts

5. Researching No comprehensive statewide data in the U.S.
No data in California
how laws are being implemented
who is most impacted
what are the criminal penalties

6. HIV Criminalization in California: Penal Implications for People Living with HIV/AIDS
Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) data obtained from the California Department of Justice for any individuals who had contact with the criminal justice system under HIV statutes, from the time of enactment through June, 2014.
Funded by the Elton John AIDS Foundation, The Williams Institute, UCLA School of Law, and the California HIV/AIDS Research Program

7. California HIV Criminalization Laws
Code Section
Criminalized Conduct
Transmission Required?
Felony/ Misdemeanor and Statutory Sentence
Cal Penal Code §647f
Solicitation while HIV-positive No
Felony – 16 months +
Cal Health & Safety Code §120291
Exposure to HIV with intent to transmit
Felony – 3, 5 or 8 years
Cal Penal Code §
Nonconsensual sex while HIV-positive
3 year sentence enhancement
Cal Health & Safety Code §1621.5
Blood/organ donation while HIV-positive
Felony – 2, 4 or 6 years
Cal Health & Safety Code §120290
Willful exposure to communicable disease
Misdemeanor

8. California HIV Criminalization Laws
95% of all HIV- related criminal incidents impacted people engaged in sex work or suspected of engaging in sex work.

9. California HIV Criminalization Laws
HIV Prevalence in CA by Race/Ethnicity & Sex Compared With Contacts with Criminal Justice System Related to their HIV Status

10. California HIV Criminalization Laws
White men significantly less likely to be charged with HIV-specific crime (12% vs. 31%) & more likely not to be charged with any crime (71% vs. 42%)

11. Every incident in which HIV-charges brought resulted in a conviction
90% led to sentences of immediate confinement
1,174 HIV-specific
incidents
45% Not charged
23% Charged for a non-HIV-specific offense
33% Charged for an HIV-specific offense
100% Convicted of at least one HIV-specific charge
90% sentenced to immediate incarceration
93% sentenced to prison (avg. 30 months)
7% sentenced to jail
(avg. 4 months)
8% sentenced to suspended incarceration (usually combined with probation)
3% given suspended prison sentence
97% given suspended jail sentence (avg. 7 months)
1% given other sentence (probation, fines, restitution, etc.) without incarceration

12. Outcomes of HIV-Specific Criminal Incidents in California, 1988 - June 2014
Overall
Solicitation while HIV positive
Exposure with intent to transmit
Nonconsensual sex offense sentence enhancement
Exposure to a communicable disease (limited to known HIV)
Median length of incarceration
16 months
36 months
72 months
3 months
Mean length of incarceration
28.1 months
24.3 months
53.2 months
66.8 months
2.6 months
Standard Deviation
22.4 months
16.9 months
31.3 months
.75 months
Shortest Sentence
1 day
6 months
1.5 months
Longest Sentence
71 years
to life
25 years
8 years
Number of convictions with known immed. incarc. sentences
320
289 5 23 3

13. Organizing Early conversations Coordinating meetings Conference calls
LGBT lobbying capacity leveraged
Education and outreach events

14. Early Problems Inclusion of people living with HIV
Inclusion of people of color
Inclusion of women
Inclusion of sex workers
Inclusion of unfunded partners
Inclusion of unaffiliated individuals

15. Advocating Funding Shared principles Champion(s) Messaging research
Political maneuvering
Community support

16. Reflecting Legislative victory Elimination of most harmful law
Focus on laws’ impact on HIV stigma
Connecting to broader movements
Renewed activism regarding formal and lived equality for people living with HIV

17. Reflecting Is this diversity without inclusion?
Have we provided training and increased technical expertise?
Are we committed to a broader strategy to eliminate criminalization overall?
What was the point of building a coalition?
Where do we go from here?