What does it say when the country's most populous state with the largest prison population has arguably the most dysfunctional correctional system? That is the question the governor and the state Legislature -- although long overdue -- finally seem willing to tackle.
After roughly three decades of reactionary, emotionally based policies, state and locally elected officials, motivated by crisis, at least recognize that something needs to change.
Reality has finally overtaken political rhetoric. If the estimates are accurate, an already overcrowded prison system will be forced to turn on its "no vacancy" sign by June (a federal judge gave California officials six months to ease crowding or face a population cap and inmate releases).
The reasons for this crisis are simple. The current criminal justice philosophy has little regard for rehabilitation, opting instead for punishment and retribution. Education, job training and drug treatment have been largely dismissed as taboo, liberal and soft-on-crime theories that are more interested in the rights of the perpetrators than those of the victims or their families.
Moreover, three strikes and minimum sentencing laws, fueled by the so-called "war on drugs," have led to excessive punishments for millions of nonviolent offenders. While advocating such policies has proven to be quite effective toward winning elections, it has done so at the expense of what is best for the community.
At the foundation of this policy run amok is a prison industrial complex that has successfully lobbied for additional prisons at a rate that has far exceeded the desire to increase the number of campuses in the University of California or California State University systems.
All of which may have calmed our short-term fears, but it has had the inverse effect, ultimately making our communities less safe.
Decades of shortsightedness and political opportunism has led to a system that has 16,000 inmates assigned to cots in hallways and gyms, and is accepting requests from those who wish to be transferred to prisons out of state. With nearly seven of 10 released from prison returning, California also boasts one of the highest recidivism rates in the country.
The governor and the Legislature must expand the definition of "tough on crime" to mean something that once again includes rehabilitation. The definition of rehabilitation should include resources for job training, education and drug abuse treatment, especially for nonviolent offenders.
The high recidivism rate implies the current system based on retribution is not working. It also makes communities such as Oakland and the surrounding areas less safe when meaner, less-caring individuals than what originally entered prison are now back on the streets.
Another area that warrants immediate attention is the strict sentences. Over the years, the Legislature has passed laws that leave judges with little discretion. A one-size-fits-all system that treats everyone the same must err on the side of the worst offenders, which only enhances the possibility that those convicted of nonviolent crimes are more likely to become like their violent counterparts than the reverse.
Prison reform efforts must also include the political will to rethink the "Three Strikes" law and the requisite pandering that goes with it.
In 2004, Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, standing with the parents of Polly Klaas, whose tragic murder spurred the "Three Strikes" law, stood on the courthouse steps decrying the potential impact if Proposition 66 -- which would have limited three-strikes sentencing to felony crimes -- had passed.
I recall the impassioned mayor declaring that he did not want convicted murderer Richard Allen Davis back on the streets. That's good to know, but who did? It is that type of useless rhetoric that must go if we are to have true reform. Can't we distinguish between the criminally insane and those who possess the potential for rehabilitation?
This is particularly true for Mayor Brown, who will soon be the state attorney general and will play a prominent role in any prison reform efforts. I am also hopeful that Oakland Mayor-elect Ronald Dellums' voice will be factored in, for cities like Oakland bear the brunt of the broken system.
Perhaps the current state of California prisons will cause our elected leaders to act. What we can't have is reform that does little more than tinker around the edges. That is simply deferred chaos.
Byron Williams is an Oakland pastor and syndicated columnist. E-mail him at byron@byronspeaks.com or leave a message at (510) 208-6417. Send a letter to the editor to soundoff@angnewspapers.com