Pubdate: Mon, 29 May 2006 Source: Los Angeles Times (CA) Copyright: 2006 Los Angeles Times Contact: http://www.latimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248 Author: Jay Wachtel TACKLING JAIL OVERCROWDING Re "Sheriff Toughens the Rules on Early Release of Inmates" Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley's objection to early releases from the county's overstuffed jail system draws attention from a problem of his own making. Sheriff Lee Baca (of whom I am no fan) did not participate in the plea bargain that sentenced convicted robber Mario Moreno to county jail for possessing a sawed-off shotgun, a crime that qualifies for state prison time. In a system so overburdened that it has become riddled with makeshift safety valves, dangerous criminals get their most significant "break" at the time of sentencing, inevitably transforming local jails into volatile urban penal colonies. Tweaking the output so that a select few will do nine months instead of three will do nothing more than provide an illusion of safety and further delay the fundamental corrections that the criminal justice system desperately needs. JAY WACHTEL Lecturer Division of Politics, Justice and Administration Cal State Fullerton - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman