The Riverside County District Attorney's Office co-sponsored a new state law that changes how California courts handle defendants found mentally incompetent to stand trial.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1401, the DA's office announced Oct. 1. State Sen. Henry Stern authored the bill.

SB 1401 fixes a specific problem. Recent changes to California's mental competency statutes created conflicting procedures under Penal Code sections 1370 and 1370.01. The new law aligns those sections so courts follow the same process when deciding whether a defendant qualifies for behavioral health services, conservatorship or CARE Court, the state's Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment Court program.

The law also lets courts share confidential information in felony cases to determine a defendant's eligibility for mental health programs. Judges, not just mental health experts, can now find a defendant "gravely disabled" and refer them for conservatorship.

"SB 1401 brings needed consistency to the laws governing defendants who are found mentally incompetent to stand trial," said Chief Deputy District Attorney Ivy Fitzpatrick, the office's legislative representative.

Riverside County already operates an Incompetent to Stand Trial Court program through its collaborative courts system, coordinating between Behavioral Health, the DA's office, public defenders, the sheriff and the Department of State Hospitals.