Pubdate: Mon, 7 Sep 2009
Source: San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright: 2009 San Jose Mercury News
Contact:  http://www.mercurynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/390
Author: Tracy Velazquez
Note: Tracy Velazquez is executive director of the Justice Policy 
Institute, a Washington, D.C. based think tank.

HERE'S A RECIPE FOR CALIFORNIA PRISON REFORM

Squeezed by the pressures of a federal lawsuit and a crushing budget 
deficit, California must finally face the reality of its ineffective, 
bloated prison system.

State leaders must reduce the prison population by about 40,000 
people, still leaving more than 130,000 in prison. The question is: 
Can this be done in a way that protects public safety? Yes. But to do 
this, the state must provide the people leaving prison with treatment 
and services, and it must invest in programs and strategies proven to 
create opportunities and build communities.

Current proposals have California trying to get by through tweaking 
the system to whittle away at the edges of the problem. Certainly 
adjusting some categories of offenses that now have excessive 
sentences, by changing them from felonies to misdemeanors, is a 
needed reform. But this isn't enough to significantly reduce prison 
population and costs.

What more substantial steps should California take? First and 
foremost, it should help keep people who have been released from going back.

California has already taken steps toward reforming its parole 
system, which may help reduce recidivism rates.  Research shows that 
more people are successful on parole when parole officers' successes 
are measured by the number of people who successfully re-enter the 
community, not by how many the officers send back to prison. It also 
helps when parolees aren't excessively burdened by meaningless rules 
and excessive requirements that don't address their needs or have any 
public safety benefits. Levels of parole supervision should be 
matched to the person's risk of committing another crime and to the 
person's needs for treatment and services.

If the state is to see sustained decreases in prison populations, it 
should increase - not slash - funding for drug treatment and 
rehabilitation programs.  Untreated addiction and mental illness is 
pushing the revolving door that has become the incarceration 
experience for thousands of Californians.

Research in Washington state found that for every dollar spent on 
drug treatment, the state received $18 in benefits in terms of public 
safety. Those who receive adequate treatment can become productive 
community members, earning income, paying taxes and child support, 
and being active, positive parents.

Too often policymakers think putting public safety first means 
filling prisons and jails. In these tight economic times, increased 
incarceration means decreased funding for other programs. Spending on 
education, housing and employment can have a tremendous influence on 
reducing crime and building safer and healthier communities.

Data shows that a 5 percent increase in male high school graduation 
rates would produce an annual savings of almost $5 billion nationally 
in crime-related expenses. Coupled with annual earnings of those who 
graduated, the state would receive more than $1 billion in benefits 
from increased graduation rates.

What is needed is a real paradigm shift - one that focuses on 
building individual and community assets for the future rather than 
warehousing people. The time is now for California to reinvent its 
approach to prisons and public safety.
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake