Prison Overcrowding has California’s Budget Locked Up
A new law recently signed by Republican Governor Schwarzenegger addresses two emergencies that California faces; the budget crisis, and unconstitutional overcrowding in our state prisons. This legislation achieves both aims through actions recommended for years by independent analysts and commissions. The state spends, on average, $47,000 per year to house a prisoner; estimates suggest these changes could save $100 million in this year alone. Perhaps one of the reasons the prisons are so overcrowded is that defendants failed to get one of the best criminal defense lawyers in Los Angeles.
This legislation, approved by the Democratic-controlled State Legislature by a narrow margin, changes the current focus of many parole officers. Currently, they spend much of their time monitoring low-level offenders and sending them back to prison for technical violations of their parole. Instead, parole officers will focus on tracking serious, violent offenders. To enable this shift, hundreds of low-level offenders, released early under this legislation, not be required to be closely supervised by parole officers. Prisoners may also be released early if they complete drug and education programs. Others will have their sentences reduced because new sentencing formulas give more credit for the time each prisoner served in county jails before and after sentencing. Currently, many parolees end up back in prison after a parole violation, which is why it is so important to get a criminal defense attorney who has experience with California Criminal Law and Parole Hearings.
The state prison population in California has been a major drain on the state’s financial resources, a problem being addressed by the governor. Currently, almost $8 billion goes to the penal system annually. That sum constitutes ten percent of yearly spending, resulting in prisons and jails receiving a larger budget than public higher education in California.
The prison system would require even greater financing if we continued with business as usual; this is evident when we look inside the state prison fifty miles north of Los Angeles. There, 4,600 inmates are overflowing in buildings intended for half of that number. For instance, a gymnasium is filled from wall to wall with triple-bunked beds; the deafening noise and stale air is caused by its residents, nearly 150 prisoners.
The last few weeks in California represent the most substantial effort to reduce prison overcrowding since the 1970s. This proposal would reduce overcrowding and cut costs by removing criminals from prison who do not threaten society. These prisoners would then be categorized as either little or no risk outside the prison walls, or as still requiring regular supervision. A good criminal defense attorney would help their client try to seize this opportunity to get receive a favorable sentence.
The governor’s goal, through this legislation, is to reduce the current population of 167,000 prisoners next year by over 6,000. Although this would be a small percentage of the total number of prisoners, such a reduction would outstrip the prison population of many states last year, including Utah, Nebraska, and New Mexico.
However, the legislation is not without controversy; the release of prisoners in California has stirred a backlash. Some continue to advocate a “tough on crime” approach, asking that long sentences be served in full. Others complain because of early problems caused by the release of particular prisoners. Other states have equivocated in their decisions to save costs by releasing inmates early and expanding parole, due to public safety concerns.
Even so, the prison overcrowding problem in California is the worst in the country, and the ever increasing $20 billion budget deficit has left lawmakers with no alternative but to enact fiscally rational measures. The reality of shouldering the ever greater costs of our current penal system, combined with the additional costs that would come from housing prisoners while meeting the court-ordered reduction in overcrowding has squelched support for traditional but ultimately unsustainable solutions like building more prisons.
At county jails, hundreds of inmates were released in recent months because of confusion regarding the correct method of calculating credit for time served under the new legislation. Attorney General Jerry Brown attempted to clarify the law through a public directive, but not before one prisoner was arrested and charged with attempted rape in Sacramento shortly after his release. In that case, the defendant had served jail time on an assault charge, and was released on probation. Several lawmakers reacted to that case by clamoring for the end of early release. Crime victim and law enforcement groups have warned about the dangers of failing to closely track low-level offenders. “We are concerned about victims these felons will leave in their wake before being rearrested for committing new crimes,” said Paul M. Weber, the president of the Los Angeles police union.
Proponents, such as corrections secretary Matthew Cate, have stood by the law, arguing that this legislation is not only necessary, it is overdue. Make sure you have an attorney that will utilize this new legislation to receive the most favorable sentence you can by contacting a criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles at The Elden Law Group.
Call 1-800-455-6200 For A Free Consultation
Tagged with: California criminal attorneys • prison reform • prison system • sentencing
Filed under: California Prisons
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According to the Legislative Analysist ‘s figures the prison bed shortage has declined to about 1,500 beds. The real correctional bed shortage is the 65,000 county jail bed shortage reported by the Sherriff’s Association. Go figure!Actually, there are two obvious and simple ways for the State to save billions.
One, allowing contracting with counties for parole supervision, like Oregon and Minnesota have for forty years. This would save more than $400 million annually in prison operating costs. California’s technical violation rate is 35 percent, compared to 20 percent for the other states. With local courts dealing with technical violations, California’s technical violation rate would return to 20% like the rest of the country.
Second, require and pay counties to provide correctional beds for technical violators from their county. Counties could provide correctional beds directly or contract with cities or private firms for correctional beds. Contract beds cost about $30,300 less in annual operating costs than prison beds. The State would save about $500 million in annual operating costs and avoid spending billions in prison construction costs. (Based on the LAOs figures, the prison bed shortage is now less than 1,500 beds.) Prior to the county jail bed shortage, technical parole violators were retained in jail rather than prison.
The State could apply any unspent AB900 bond funds to the deficit.