It is the batterer’s program California requires as a condition of probation when probation is granted for a crime against a spouse, cohabitant, dating partner, co-parent, or certain relatives. The “52 weeks” reflects the statutory minimum: Penal Code section 1203.097 requires at least one year of weekly sessions of at least two hours, finished within 18 months, and more sessions can be added.

Who has to attend

Section 1203.097(a) applies whenever a person is granted probation for a crime in which the victim is a person described in Family Code section 6211: a current or former spouse or cohabitant, a current or former dating or engagement partner, the other parent of the defendant’s child (where the Uniform Parentage Act presumption applies), a child of a party or a child who is the subject of a parentage action, or anyone related by blood or marriage within the second degree. It turns on the victim’s relationship, not on one particular charge, and that probation must last at least 36 months (1203.097(a)(1)).

What the program requires

  • Length and format. At least one year, with weekly sessions of at least two hours of class time and progress reports to the court every three months or less. If no batterer’s program is available, the court designates another appropriate counseling program (1203.097(a)(6)).
  • Attendance. Consecutive weekly sessions. The program can excuse no more than three individual sessions for good cause during the entire program.
  • Deadline. Completion within 18 months, unless the court, after a hearing, finds good cause to modify the consecutive-attendance or 18-month requirement.
  • Enrollment proof. Filed with the court within 30 days of conviction (1203.097(a)(10)(B)).
  • Approved providers only. The court may refer you only to a program the county probation department has approved, and programs must renew that approval every year (1203.097(c)(2), (c)(5)).
  • Program rules. Among other things, approved programs use same-gender groups, require sober attendance, exclude couples and family counseling, use a written agreement on attendance, and teach about power and control and the effects of abuse on children. You also sign a statement promising not to disclose information about other participants (1203.097(c)(1)).

The program must immediately report any violation of the protective order’s terms, including new violence or failure to meet program requirements, to the court and the prosecutor, and to the probation department if you are on formal probation (1203.097(a)(10)(B)).

Seven counties can use a different program. Until July 1, 2030, Penal Code section 1203.099 lets Napa, Sacramento, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, and Yolo counties offer a domestic violence program that meets its own standards, including a risk and needs assessment. Treatment lasts at least one year unless a validated risk and needs assessment sets a different length, and completing it counts as meeting the batterer’s program requirement.

What it costs

  • $500 fee. Section 1203.097(a)(5) requires a minimum $500 fee. After a hearing in open court, the court may reduce or waive it if you cannot pay, stating its reason on the record. It is a fee, not a fine, and can be collected after probation ends.
  • Program fees. Each program charges on a sliding scale based on ability to pay. Indigent defendants may negotiate deferred payments but pay a nominal fee unless the court, after a hearing, finds they cannot (1203.097(c)(1)(P)). Probation is not lifted until reasonable program fees are paid, though it cannot be extended for that reason beyond the maximum term in Penal Code section 1203.1(a) (1203.097(a)(7)(A)(ii)).
  • In place of a fine. The court may order up to $5,000 in payments to a domestic violence shelter-based program, reimbursement of the victim’s reasonable expenses directly caused by the offense, or both; neither replaces the $500 fee. The court must first determine your ability to pay, and you carry the burden of showing you cannot. A shelter payment may not be ordered if it would impair your ability to pay direct restitution to the victim or court-ordered child support (1203.097(a)(11)).

If things go wrong

If the program finds you unsuitable, it must immediately contact the probation department or the court, which will either set a hearing or refer you to another approved program (1203.097(a)(9)).

When the program recommends more sessions, the court must order them for the rest of probation unless it finds that would not be in the interests of justice and states its reasons on the record. It considers factors such as whether you have gone six months without violence, cooperated with the program, practice positive conflict resolution, and accept responsibility, or whether you have made threats or degraded the victim (1203.097(a)(10)(A)).

If it appears to the prosecutor, the court, or probation that you are performing unsatisfactorily, not benefiting from counseling, or have engaged in criminal conduct, the court must hold a priority hearing. If it finds unsatisfactory performance, no benefit, a probation violation, or criminal conduct, it must end your participation and proceed with further sentencing (1203.097(a)(12)).

On formal probation, failing to report to probation for the initial investigation or failing to enroll as directed can result in further incarceration. The court may grant relief for mistake or excusable neglect, but the application must be filed within 20 court days of the missed deadline, that time cannot be extended, and a copy must be served on the prosecutor (1203.097(b)(2)).

What finishing does

Completing the program satisfies that probation condition. Section 1203.097 does not make completion end probation early or shorten a protective order issued in the case; those follow their own terms (see criminal protective orders).

What to do

  • Confirm which programs currently hold county probation approval before you enroll.
  • Keep copies of your enrollment proof and your own record of each session and any excused absence.
  • If you cannot pay, ask for an ability-to-pay hearing rather than missing payments.

For the charges that lead to this requirement, see domestic violence. The Law Offices of David S. Chesley can review your probation terms and explain what compliance requires in your case. Call (800) 755-5174.