Spitzer vs. Schwarzenegger

It's the battle of the coasts in regards to prison growth snd the future and NY Governor Eliot Spitzer seems to be the one that will come out ahead. Doug Berman posts this thougtful compilation of what's going on between California and New York over at Sentencing Law and Policy (thanks for the tip Corrections Sentencing)

Here's Doug:

Despite his action hero movie persona, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger continues to play the role of villain in various sentencing reform stories: e.g., authorizing (and then halting) work on a secret death chamber; persistently failing to deal with severe prison problems; undermining efforts to reform the state's extreme three-strikes law. Meanwhile, on the other coast, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer is showing how easy it can be for a motivate chief executive to move forward on sentencing reform.

As detailed in this press release, yesterday Spitzer announced several appointments to the New York State Commission on Sentencing Reform. Spitzer on his own initiative created this Commission last month through Executive Order 10, which calls upon the Commission to "conduct a comprehensive review of New York’s current sentencing structure, sentencing practices, community supervision, and the use of alternatives to incarceration." And not one to waste any time, Spitzer's executive order creates an ambitious agenda and a tight timeline for this Commission's work: