CA Early Release Plan Is Praised

The governor drew fierce derision and strong praise for his plan to give early release to tens of thousands of low-risk criminals and stop monitoring them on parole.

Schwarzenegger would also allow offenders newly sentenced to 20 months or less for nonviolent crimes to walk free without serving a day if they didn't have a prior violent conviction on their records.

"The policy statement here is to prioritize that violent offenders will serve their time under the current laws and that the nonviolent [criminals] will get early release," said James Tilton, secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. With the cuts, the agency's proposed budget would be $10.3 billion.

The cuts would alleviate pressure on the state's overcrowded prisons, which are under scrutiny by federal judges. Prisoner advocates, who applauded Schwarzenegger's plan, say the crowding problem is worsened by California's policy of putting every ex-convict on parole regardless of the crime, resulting in many being sent back to prison for minor violations.

The plan would need legislative approval by March 1 to start this year and achieve the savings Schwarzenegger needs. Some opponents called the governor a hypocrite for reversing his pledge not to release prisoners early. Aides said he was fulfilling a commitment to fix the state's prisons by focusing on the most violent offenders.

Critics said the plan could overburden local law enforcement officials, who are already turning criminals away from some packed county jails.

"It's unacceptable to balance the budget of California on the backs of the people who obey the law," said L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca.

Overall, Schwarzenegger's budget estimates that his plan would cut the prison population, now 173,000, by more than 28,000 inmates next year and nearly 35,000 by 2010. As many as 2,000 prison guards would face layoffs.

For the state to reduce the inmate population enough to save, as it hopes, more than $370 million by 2009 and $750 million annually by 2010, it would have to keep 50,000 or more convicts out of prison, by some estimates. That is because many serve only a few months at a time; the state might have to get rid of three short-timers to eliminate one bed.
LA TIMES