blog post New Bail Ruling Could Affect Tens of Thousands of Californians By Vicki Hsieh, Heather Harris Apr 13, 2021 A recent California Supreme Court ruling forbids keeping arrestees in jail because they cannot afford to pay bail. What are the potential implications for the state’s criminal justice system?
blog post Election Takeaways: California Voters Send Conflicting Signals By Mark Baldassare Dec 14, 2020 Nearly 18 million Californians voted in the November 2020 election—an all-time high. PPIC’s Mark Baldassare discusses the final election results and what they say about Californians’ mindset and policy preferences in a year of unprecedented challenges.
blog post Election Day and California’s Future By Mark Baldassare Nov 3, 2020 In a year of unprecedented crises, Californians express a high level of enthusiasm about voting, and the state appears on course to set a modern-day record for voter turnout.
blog post Pretrial Reform in California By Heather Harris, Magnus Lofstrom Aug 26, 2020 New PPIC research examines a proposed criminal justice reform that would end money bail and replace it with a new process of determining pretrial release.
Report Reforming Pretrial Justice in California By Heather Harris, Magnus Lofstrom Aug 19, 2020 This November, Californians will vote on a significant shift in pretrial processes in the state.
blog post California’s Incarcerated Population Plunges to New Low during COVID-19 By Heather Harris, Alexandria Gumbs, Joseph Hayes Aug 19, 2020 The number of people in California’s prisons and jails has declined substantially since February. Still, most state prisons remain overcrowded, and many counties have seen recent increases in jail populations.
Report Proposition 47’s Impact on Racial Disparity in Criminal Justice Outcomes By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin, Steven Raphael Jun 23, 2020 Proposition 47, which reclassified a number of drug and property offenses from felonies to misdemeanors, has led to a marked decrease in racial disparities in arrests and bookings in California. But rates remain significantly higher for African Americans than for other groups.
blog post Low Crime Numbers Leveling off Under Shelter-in-Place By Magnus Lofstrom May 26, 2020 While crime rates continue to be low in major California cities, some crimes—such as burglaries and car theft—have gone up.
blog post California’s Jail Population Has Plummeted during COVID-19 By Joseph Hayes, Heather Harris May 8, 2020 All counties have released more people from jail than they’ve admitted, but population decreases vary widely across counties.
blog post Jail Bookings Down Significantly during COVID-19 By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin May 6, 2020 California’s “zero-bail” emergency measure, along with decreased crime and changes in local law enforcement practices, appear to have substantially reduced the number of people sent to jail during the pandemic.
