People v. Floyd

Opinion

BAXTER, J.

In this case we must decide whether Proposition 36, the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act of 2000, applies to defendants who were sentenced prior to the act’s effective date of July 1, 2001, but whose judgments were not yet final as of that date. We conclude that the act’s saving clause—which states that “[e]xcept as otherwise provided, the provisions of this act shall become effective July 1, 2001, and its provisions shall be applied prospectively” (Prop. 36, § 8, as approved by voters, Gen. Elec. (Nov. 7, 2000) (Proposition 36), reprinted at 51 West’s Ann. Pen. Code…