Tatum

The District Attorney for the County of San Bernardino (District Attorney) appeals the trial court’s dismissal of a petition to involuntarily commit Robert Tatum as a mentally disordered offender (MDO) upon the expiration of his parole period. The trial court ruled that due to the District Attorney’s delay in the filing of the petition, the petition was untimely in that the trial could not be commenced at least 30 days prior to Tatum’s release as required by statute. The court also found the District Attorney’s nearly six-month delay in filing the petition was not excused by “good cause,” and that the proffered explanation for the delay was “outrageous” and “callous[],” amounting to, at most, “inexcusable negligence.” The court further determined that were the petition allowed to go forward, it would necessitate trial well after Tatum’s release date, requiring a significant extension of Tatum’s involuntary commitment without statutory authorization. Balancing the justification for the delay against the resulting “actual prejudice,” the trial court ruled that the delay in filing the petition violated Tatum’s constitutional rights to due process, and dismissed the…