State Eliminates 40% of Funding for Rehab Programs Aimed at Helping Prisoners Succeed After Release. Gina Tatum spends her days in a compound surrounded by electrified fence in the sun-baked heart of the Central Valley, hoping to change her life. She will soon turn 50, and after two decades in and out of prison, she says she is tired of victimizing others, tired of stealing, tired of doing drugs. "I can't afford any more years up here -- I've lost too many," said Tatum, who is serving a four-year stint for forgery at the Valley State Prison for Women in Chowchilla. "I'm trying to learn things to change my thinking, change everything about me, so I can go home. It's so easy to get caught up here and never leave. I don't want to die in prison." [continues 1269 words]
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Friday evening gave federal judges a road map to reducing state prison overcrowding. But the proposal would take more than twice as long as the judges ordered to make the improvements they demanded and would fall short if state lawmakers did not approve certain provisions, administration officials said. The plan appears to set up a confrontation between the governor and the judges, who made their impatience clear in ordering the state to forge a plan to reduce the number of inmates by 40,000 within two years. Schwarzenegger's plan would take five years -- if lawmakers sign off on it. [continues 795 words]
Fear and Mistrust Stymic Lawmakers's Bid to Trim $1.2 Billion. Some Worry About Looking Soft on Crime. California lawmakers signed off last month on deep cuts to education, healthcare and welfare that many said they could scarcely have imagined in years past. But when it came time last week to address the state's overcrowded prison system -- an area where the Democrats who control the Legislature have long pushed for change -- they froze. [continues 1075 words]
The Group Includes Former Governors Gray Davis, Pete Wilson, George Deukmejian and Jerry Brown. Supporters of the Drug Initiative Portray Their Foes As Shills for the Prison Guards Union. The battle over an initiative that would divert drug offenders from prison into treatment and loosen state parole policies has intensified heading into Tuesday's vote, with a bipartisan coalition of elected officials joining the state prison guards union to fight the measure. Supporters of Proposition 5, whose heavy fundraising advantage has been whittled down, have cast foes as shills for the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn. and its alleged effort to keep the state prison system overcrowded. The union has spent $1.8 million to fight the initiative. [continues 448 words]
The far-reaching measure would increase treatment and eliminate incarceration for those convicted of nonviolent, drug-related crimes. But opponents see another agenda. SACRAMENTO -- In a state that has consistently boosted penalties for criminals, packing California's prisons to bursting, sponsors of the far-reaching Proposition 5 are asking voters in November to go in the opposite direction. The Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act, funded in part by billionaire George Soros, would be "the most ambitious sentencing and prison reform in U.S. history," according to the Drug Policy Alliance Network, a primary sponsor. [continues 945 words]
The Actor, Who Like His Son Has Battled Substance Abuse, Is Co-Chairing an Effort Against Prop. 5, Which Would Expand Court-Sanctioned Treatment for Addicts Instead of Jail Time. SACRAMENTO -- Martin Sheen, the politically liberal actor who has advocated a tough-love approach to drug addiction, is teaming up with California law-and-order groups to lead the charge against an initiative that would increase funding for rehabilitation programs. The No on Proposition 5 Campaign announced Wednesday that Sheen would serve as its co-chairman and as the most prominent figure in the battle against the November ballot measure. The opponents said the initiative is too soft on addicts because it would expand the pool of offenders who could be diverted from serving jail or prison time by undergoing treatment. [continues 491 words]
Closures to Save At Least $2 Million When he first tried to kick his alcohol and drug habit, Kevin Johnson checked into an upscale treatment program in Connecticut where he received breakfast in bed but was kicked out after 30 days. He returned to delivering the mail in Farmingdale, and soon suffered a relapse. Three years later, after losing his job and his health insurance, the Bethpage native entered the Plainview Rehabilitation Center, a treatment facility run by Nassau County for nearly three decades. The atmosphere was less cushy, but after two months Johnson broke his decades-long addiction. [continues 800 words]
State Police yesterday defended as justified the fatal shooting of a drug suspect during a Friday morning raid in Aquebogue, while lawyers for the dead man pressed for information and called for a special investigation. John Rasanen, 27, died of a single gunshot wound to the chest after clashing with State Trooper Daniel Brown moments after the 6 a.m. raid began, police said. With his gun drawn, Brown kicked open the door to a downstairs bedroom at 12 Overlook Dr., as Rasanen and a woman lay sleeping. [continues 585 words]
An early morning drug raid in Aquebogue went awry Friday when a New York State Police trooper shot and killed a 27-year-old man who was one target of an investigation into a marijuana and cocaine ring, law enforcement officials said. The shooting at 12 Overlook Drive came seconds after two State Police troopers with guns drawn entered John Rasanen's dark basement bedroom at about 6 a.m. Friday, police said. Rasanen was in bed with a woman when the troopers stormed inside. [continues 893 words]
