N.D.
People v. N.D.
Opinion
lead Opinion
Wiseman, J.
The main issue in this case concerns amendments to Welfare and Institutions Code sections 731 and 733 that took effect on September 1, 2007. 1 Under these amendments, a juvenile court can commit a ward to the Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF) (formerly the California Youth Authority) only if the petition upon which the ward is committed is for certain enumerated offenses. We hold that these amendments do not apply to a disposition that occurred before September 1, 2007. The common law rule requiring application of statutes that mitigate punishment to all cases not yet final on their effective dates is inapplicable. The amendments did not mitigate punishment, but only limited the places in which a ward can be confined. Since the juvenile court committed minor N.D. to the DJF before September 1, 2007, he is not entitled to reversal of the commitment.
In the unpublished portion of this opinion, we conclude that it is unnecessary to reach N.D.’s contention that another recently enacted law, section 731.1, is unconstitutional. Finally, we reject N.D.’s claim that the juvenile court abused its discretion in committing him to the DJF. We affirm the judgment.