The proposed state law named for slain Poway teenager Chelsea King, cracking down on sex offenders, passed the Assembly on Thursday, but the unanimous vote may be deceiving.

Brent and Kelly King, Chelsea's parents, talk to the media Thursday after a version of Chelsea's Law passed the Assembly unanimously. The bill now faces a Senate vote. (June 3, 2010 - Photo by John R. McCutchen)

Chelsea's Law likely will confront serious challenges at its next stop: the Senate Public Safety Committee, which scrutinizes any attempt to lengthen prison sentences for an already-overcrowded system.

Among the questions: how can costs be contained, are the stiffer penalties justifiable, should its focus be broadened, and how will already overworked parole agents be able to prevent freed child-sex predators from loitering in still loosely defined parks?

Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, R-San Diego, confirmed in an interview that talks are under way to shape the measure to meet the anticipated demands of the committee.

"I am open to refinements to make this a better bill," said Fletcher, its author. "We want a good piece of public policy that will better protect children. ... The commitment is the same: to protect children from violent sexual offenders."

Fletcher is also considering amendments or introducing a new measure that would implement key recommendations advanced by the Sex Offender Management Board, which advises the governor and Legislature.

The 17-member board proposed to tailor treatment and punishment to better fit the severity of the crimes, as well as using better tests to measure the risk of repeat offenses.

Chelsea's Law, which passed 65-0, would require a "one-strike" life sentence without parole in some sex crimes against children. It would also double certain sentences, extend the time spent on parole for some offenses and prevent predators on parole from entering parks where children are present without prior permission of authorities.

Assembly Bill 1844 was introduced in response to the rape and murder of 17-year-old Chelsea in February. Convicted sex offender John Albert Gardner III pleaded guilty to murdering Chelsea and Amber Dubois, 14, of Escondido. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

At a news conference, the King family urged supporters to stay motivated and not let the measure's momentum slow.

"We're halfway through a marathon," said Brent King, Chelsea's father. "We need all the good people to rally again to show the state Senate that we care, that we want to get this legislation passed quickly, and we want to get it to the governor's desk for signature. The children of California are counting on it. Godspeed, Senate."

Most San Diego-area lawmakers voted for the legislation.

"None of us can imagine the horror those children went through, and it shouldn't happen again," said Assemblywoman Mary Salas, D-Chula Vista.

Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña, D-San Diego, abstained. She choked up as she spoke, noting that a member of her family had been raped. She recalled how some of her legislative efforts to correct flaws in rape laws stalled in the Senate Public Safety Committee.

In an interview explaining the abstention, Saldaña said that "as a neutral party," she could better influence the measure's shape and course to overcome the anticipated resistance in that committee.

Saldaña also said she wants to review possible amendments, such as better defining parks to make sure a ban is workable.

Fletcher, knowing that the fate of his bill lies in the hands of committee Chairman Mark Leno, has already had several conversations with the San Francisco Democrat about compromises that could secure passage.

The committee has a general policy to shelve measures that could aggravate prison overcrowding and further drain the over-tapped state budget. It also has a reputation for resisting more prison time, preferring alternative approaches that stress rehabilitation.

Leno declined to comment, saying he didn't want to prejudice the process.

Costs remain unclear, but generally the full impact would not be felt for several years.

The state's prison agency estimates that the per-year price would gradually climb to $54 million a year in 20 years. A report from the state legislative analyst said the measure "would likely result in increased criminal justice system costs" that range from tens of millions initially to hundreds of millions of dollars as more prison beds are needed in the long term.

Fletcher from the outset promised to rein in the expense, perhaps by offering reforms in the prison agency or limiting the reach of the measure. He has yet to detail those plans.

"The focus is not tailoring the bill for cost," he said. "The focus is tailoring the bill for good policy."

If Chelsea's Law survives the Public Safety Committee, most of those watching the legislation's progress are convinced it will be signed into law. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has endorsed it.

But there remains a small core of opponents who are expected to urge the Senate to block the measure.

In earlier letters submitted to the Assembly Public Safety Committee, critics highlighted some of the cost issues as well as other concerns.

Francisco Lobaco, legislative director of the American Civil Liberties Union, noted that the measure's one-strike provision is a penalty normally reserved for murderers. He called that sentence "disproportionate and excessive."

Banning parolees from parks is "irrational" given that it "will submit thousands of individuals to additional criminal penalties without improving public safety," Lobaco wrote.

Liberty Sanchez, a lobbyist for public defenders, wrote, "Locking up every child molester for life without the possibility of parole will not create a safer California. To the contrary, we believe that this measure will tie up already scarce resources thereby preventing law enforcement from focusing on those individuals who do pose a risk to society."

Thursday's Assembly vote was the second related victory for Fletcher this week. On Wednesday, the Assembly unanimously approved his legislation that prohibits the shredding of a parolee's field file, which provides extensive information about the ex-convict's behavior and movements, as well as how parole agents responded to possible violations of conditions.

Parts of Gardner's file were shredded under state policy at the time. Schwarzenegger then stepped in, ordering the prisons agency to stop the practice. But Fletcher and others want the ban put into law so that it cannot be arbitrarily changed without legislative approval.

State Inspector General David Shaw, as part of his stinging condemnation this week of how the state handled Gardner's parole, said in his report that some of his investigation was stymied by destroyed records.

"We weren't able to go back and look forensically" at the records, Shaw said in a subsequent interview. He did not endorse the legislation, having not read it. But, Shaw added, "I would support a recommendation that they not be destroyed."

Assemblyman Hector De La Torre, D-South Gate, a co-author of Assembly Bill 2295, said the destruction of the files "impeded the work of law enforcement and jeopardizes the safety of families."