By Marisa Lagos
The San Francisco Chronicle
SAN FRANCISCO — A man who has served less than four years of his 68-year prison sentence for a violent robbery has become the first person in California granted parole under a new law authorizing the release of medically incapacitated inmates.
Craig Lemke, 48, poses no threat to public safety due to his undisclosed medical condition, a two-member panel of the state Board of Parole Hearings found on Wednesday during a hearing at the Pleasant Valley State Prison in Coalinga. The Lake County convict’s medical condition was not disclosed for privacy reasons.
He was the second inmate to be considered for medical parole under a law authored by Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, that went into effect this year and is aimed at saving the state millions of dollars. The law states that inmates who are “permanently medically incapacitated with a medical condition” that makes them “unable to perform activities of basic daily living” may be released if they do not pose a threat to public safety.
A spokeswoman for the court-appointed medical receiver in charge of California’s prison health care praised the board’s decision, saying it will save the state up to $750,000 a year in guarding costs and an untold amount on Lemke’s medical care.
“We’re pleased the board found he met the criteria,” Nancy Kincaid said. “We are continuing to look for more individuals that could meet the criteria. ... There are a total of 40 inmates on the list, and we are always working to identify more.”
Lemke was convicted of seven felonies in connection with the home-invasion robbery of an elderly couple. The counts included first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary, elder theft, grand theft and two counts of falsely imprisoning an elderly person. According to media reports, Lemke and another man tied up an elderly couple, then stole thousands of dollars worth of guns, ammunition and cash.
It was the third strike for Lemke, who served time in prison in the 1980s and 1990s for three previous felony convictions, including robbery, transporting or importing a controlled substance and possession of a weapon. He was sentenced in 2007 under California’s “three strikes” law, which allows harsher sentences for people with prior violent felony convictions.
Lemke is being cared for at an undisclosed hospital outside a California prison. He will be released within 120 days, according to prison officials, unless the full board decides to reverse the panel’s decision at any time over the next four months. However, prison spokesman Luis Patino said the board plans to expedite the normal review process, meaning he could be freed earlier.
Authorities did not say where Lemke will live or who will care and provide for him.
While state officials acknowledge that most offenders eligible for medical parole would also qualify for public medical assistance, they say it will save California taxpayers money because the cost of care will be split between the federal government and the state - and because the state will not have to pay for correctional officers to guard the inmates’ beds.
In addition to saving prison dollars, the release of medically incapacitated inmates is also aimed at helping alleviate crowding in the state’s prison system. California is under a court order to reduce its prison population by approximately 33,000 inmates over the next two years.
The first inmate to be considered for release, convicted rapist Steven Martinez, 42, was found to pose a threat to public safety and was rejected for release. Martinez became a quadriplegic after being stabbed in prison. Two more men are up for consideration today, and a fifth case will be considered on June 24.
Leno estimates that the measure could save the struggling state up to $200 million in total if all of the medically incapacitated inmates were to be released. According to the state, medical care for incapacitated inmates can range from $10,600 a year, for inmates being treated at correctional treatment centers, to $1.35 million a year, if they are in a nursing facility or outside hospital. Hospice care within the prison system lands at around $110,000 a year.
The cost of guarding these inmates can also be high: For inmates housed at hospitals outside prison walls, the cost averages $750,000 per person, per year. Prison policy dictates that two correctional officers must stand guard 24 hours a day - even if an inmate is incapable of moving.
Medical parole greatly differs from the state’s “compassionate release” law, which allows a court to recall inmate sentences and release them if they are terminally ill and expected to die within six months, or if they are permanently medically incapacitated. Compassionate release is rarely granted: Over the past 20 years, 1,183 cases were submitted to prison headquarters for review, and just 348 were granted. Martinez was among the inmates who were rejected for compassionate release.
Assemblyman Jim Nielsen, R-Gerber Tehama County, who has criticized the law as unfair to victims and warned that it could lead to violent felons winning freedom, declined to comment on Lemke’s case, saying he did not know the details. But in general, he said, he fears medical parole “will be abused.”
Copyright 2011 San Francisco Chronicle
All Rights Reserved