California Keeps Prison Population High But Cuts Treatment Programs

As California's irresponsible leaders have reduced the Golden State to issuing IOU's, one would think they would be looking to the prison budget as a place to save money. The state spends over $10 billion a year on prisons. That's 11% of the general fund! But so far significant reforms of the CDCR have been off the table.

This is puzzling. Even "tough on crime" Texas has made dramatic changes that will reduce their prison population by punishing many offenders in the community, where they have access to treatment programs, and are close to their families and work. These reforms have allowed Texas to scrap plans to build three more prisons, saving hundreds of millions of dollars. Texas is investing one-third of the savings into these community alternative punishments and treatment. The other two-thirds will go to roads, hospitals and schools.

California on the other hand is going in the opposite direction. They have eliminated drug treatment programs, sex offender counseling and virtually every program which prepares inmates to live healthy, productive lives after they are released. These cuts allow the prisons to keep the maximum number of inmates incarcerated, but with no programs to occupy their time productively. Why? It certainly isn't making us safer.

Several other states have shown that they can save hundreds of millions by reserving costly prison beds for truly dangerous criminals, while punishing low-risk offenders in community facilities. These intelligent policies keep the public safe while also saving the taxpayers significant dollars. Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, and South Carolina have also reduced their prison population while reducing their crime rates. It's time for California to follow suit. You can find out more about common sense criminal justice reforms at www.justicefellowship.org

Comments

[wood62]

Just load all of the prisioners on busses and send them back to what ever county they came from and let them free, after all they cant all be that bad. no worse than the torture they have to endure from being kept in prison. Granted there will be anarchry but what the heck.

[BusGreg]

What country do you propose we send American citizens to, who are in prison. Not all those who commit crimes are foreigners!

[TamPhi]

Amen brother!

[notgilt]

The answer is relatively simple as to why CA is prison happy and prisoner rehabilitation is nil
CCPOA (California Correctional Peace Officers Association) Their union owns the legislature.
+ Corrections Corp
+ judges and D.A.’s, bucking for higher office
+victims of crime that cannot see past their noses, and rather throw the baby out with the bath water, to assuage their bitterness and desire for revenge, while pressing for even the least of offenders to be locked up until death.
And dimwiddys like “tough on crime”, self righteous, Republican legislator­s.. and the likes of Rep. Runner, of Lancaster
And wimpy Democrats that rather roll over, than to stand up for what is right
To put it simply..

[rlugbill]

Prison guards are afraid of losing their jobs and people are afraid of crime in general because of sensationalism in the news, etc., so this skews budget priorities.

A case of fear trumping good public policy. Most of the inmates have substance abuse problems and/or mental health problems. Without treatment, they are likely to relapse and commit more crimes when they are released.

I believe there should be a state constitutional amendment outlawing incarceration unless there is adequate treatment available. Prison should be about helping people to better themselves so they are less likely to commit crimes again when they are released, not about making them more likely to commit crimes, as is now the case.

But, unfortunately, this sort of approach is unlikely to happen because people don't understand who is locked up and why. They are just afraid of crime and want people locked up as much as possible to keep them away from them.

[M1]

Great article and an important subject. Who is making money on this illogical system?

[Lori Bowles]

Stock options for California prisons make more money then rehab programs. Need I say more.

[Joseph A. Palermo - Huffpost Blogger]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joseph-a-palermo/arnold-schwarzenegger-com_b_231549.html

[TRUE BLUE AMERICAN]

Skewed priorities- going to work ,baby sitting the crap of the country with all its dangers or going to work to teach children, you choose. The problem with today is that we "coddle" the criminals instead of forcing rehab upon them before they are released. Computers , cable tv etc, try teaching them something. You don't want to play along, hard labor with no privileges.

[2sleepy]

Coddled inmates? The state spends $2.43 a day to feed an inmate, they have NO computers, or access to computers, they only have a TV set if their families can buy them one (at an inflated cost) and send it through an 'approved vendor'. If an inmate wants to use the phone, their family must be willing to and able to pay a private vendor $12 for a 15 minute out of state call. In many california prisons lockdowns prevent inmates from attending educational or rehabilitative programs (if they even exist). Prison jobs are few and waiting lists for them long. Medical care was so abysmal in California prisons that the Feds took control over it, google Plata v. Schwarzenegger and read the facts of the case, it's appalling.

Get the facts before you start making assertions that are so easily refuted.

[Madhatterx6]

WOW - are you uninformed!!! I guess along with other Californians you have been brainwashed by the prison INDUSTRY and their lackeys - the legislature. The "scare tactics" that have been used to get Californians to vote for "tough on crime bills" have made the majority of Californians "sheeple". Do you realize that an 18 year old caught in the backseat with his 16 year old girlfriend can be sent to prison for years and then branded for the rest of his life as a "sex offender"? Do you realize that some of the "programs" are used to "rehabilitate" prisoners are pages from color books that have been copied, handed out with crayons and this is stress/anger management programs? As for cable television my son would love to have PBS, the History Channel, etc., but all they get is "fluff" television and cartoons.

I guess you would rather keep these guys in prison forever than to have them released - and save $47,000 per year per inmate - and say goodbye to your children's education. Sacramento seems willing to condemn your children to less education, so I guess you have bought into the hype that this is necessary. It is not. California has paid for study after study on their prison system - and ignored them all. California is stuck on STUPID - and if being billions of $$$ in the red doesn't prove that to you.......­........we­ll........­........

I am a native Californian - but I'm ashamed to admit it.

[crazynot]

Another fear monger, irresponsible comment maker who posts his opinions rather than the facts.

Cable is paid for by the inmates through the canteen. Global Tel Link is the contractor the State of California requires inmates' families to set up accounts with in order to receive collect calls from the prison. GTL in turn subsidizes the prison system.

There are inmates who are third strikers whose third strike is simple possession. The third strikers will be in prison for 25 to life, at today's current rate costing the State $50,000/year. You do the math.

California has a 70% recidivism rate due to its ridiculous parole policies. People are violated for things such as: leaving a kitchen knife in another part of the house, j-walking, driving to work more than 50 miles from home, missing an appointment with parole agents during working hours so as not to get fired from their job for missing work....

These laws were fear mongered by the CCPOA, the prison guard's union which spends millions promoting more so-called "tough on crime" legislation in order to protect jobs.

We need full disclosure before voting more laws passed. Would we vote yes to keep the drug addict in prison at a cost of $50,000 per year?

[3dtrix]

I appreciate the obvious patriotism of your moniker and avatar - but trust me, you have no idea what you're talking about. The entire state of CA is held hostage by the prison guard's union, which is the biggest player in CA politics - meaning they throw around more money in bribes - I mean "campaign contributions" than any other "special interest" group. Bottom line - it isn't about crime, punishment, public safety, rehabilitation, education, cable tv or video games - it's about empire-building bureaucrats and political hacks - period. End of story. I know it's frustrating when reality doesn't fit into one's personal narrative or prejudices, but sometimes that's just how it is...

[2sleepy]

California's prison system is designed to ensure that the offender will end up back in prison. There are no pre-release programs, the substance abuse programs that they are cutting are basically useless and sabotaged by the administration which has no use for 'rehabilitation'. Inmates are released with $200 and a bus ticket back to the very place they got in trouble.
Unions and prison corporate interests need to keep those prisons full, and if they can't do it with newly sentenced inmates, they do it by violating the parole of 70% of those discharged from prison. Parole can be violated for things like; possessing a kitchen knife in a room other than the kitchen, having 'too much' cash in your pocket, being in the company of another parolee, or being late for a parole appt.
Since the 70's prison inmates have served their full sentence and are still subjected to parole for 3-5 years. In most states, inmates are released 'early' for good conduct and remain on parole for the remainder of their proscribed sentence- not so in California. An inmate might serve his full sentence and spend much of the next 3 years in prison for 'technical violations'.
It won't change because the legislators in California are too in debt to the campaign contributions of the special interests who brought the people of California the most failed prison system in the US. I'm glad I moved out of California 10 years ago & will never move back there.

[WorkingClass]

California scares the crap out of me. I wont go there. And I live in LOUISIANA.

[winningticket]

Louisiana is pretty scary. It has the highest incarceration rate in the country, but I guess that's all right with you.

[BusGreg]

Here are a couple of You-tube clips addressing this issue. Both clips are by Judge Jim Gray of California.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RWfCwl0lZo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meciIVRznyU
It also has been proven that treatment works for many who are addicted to dangerous drugs and that incarceration only feeds recidivism. But if my old homestate wants to be stupid and continue to waste scarce resources, so be it. All I can do is boycott their produce, citrus, wines and vacation elsewhere.

[singermuse]

California pays more to it's prison guards (at least $80,000 annually) than it is willing to pay it's teachers all the way from kindergarten through college. With skewed priorities like these, is it any wonder they're in such a mess. We don't need more prisons and prisoners, we need to actually care about people. But Mr. "squash-a buggy" doesn't care about people's needs, hence the rush to cut programs and close state parks.