The San Francisco Chronicle
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has outlined a plan to save $1.2 billion in prison spending by changing the criminal justice system so that fewer people are sent to prison and fewer parolees are sent back to prison. The plan would also allow some inmates to serve time outside prison walls - in residences, hospitals, group homes or treatment centers, where they would be monitored by GPS tracking devices. In all, the governor says, the plan would reduce the California prison population of 167,700 by about 27,000 inmates.
Here are some of the details from the governor’s outline:
Felony no more: Petty thefts, writing bad checks and receiving stolen property will no longer be charged as felonies. Currently, those crimes are charged as either felonies or misdemeanors. The change means those crimes will generally not be punishable by state prison sentences.
Vehicle thefts: Stealing a car won’t automatically be considered a felony anymore. If a person steals a car worth less than $2,500, the crime would be charged as a misdemeanor.
Grand theft: Stealing an item valued at more than $400 won’t automatically be considered grand theft. The proposal would raise the grand-theft threshold to $2,500.
Alternative custody: Certain prison inmates deemed low-risk offenders would be eligible to serve their sentences outside of prison - in a home or hospital or treatment center - by wearing ankle bracelets with GPS tracking devices that would allow authorities to monitor their whereabouts. Sick or elderly inmates, or those with 12 months or less remaining on their sentences would be eligible. The plan does not specify who would monitor these inmates.
Illegal immigrants: The governor would consider commuting the sentences of some illegal immigrant inmates so that they could be turned over to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials for deportation. The governor would start with low-level offenders on a case-by-case basis. The first group of inmates could have only one felony and could not have committed a violent or sex offense.
Parole violations: Parolees who commit some parole violations won’t automatically be sent back to prison, but would be eligible to be placed under GPS supervision outside prison walls. The plan does not include details about the violations.
Parole supervision: Parolees deemed to be low or moderate risk would not be supervised by parole officers upon release from prison. They would, however, be subject to warrantless searches and seizures by local police. Only high-risk parolees - with histories of serious or violent crimes or sex offenses - would be actively supervised by parole officers. The change would lower the parole caseload ratios from 70-1 to 45-1.
Copyright 2009 San Francisco Chronicle