blog post Proposition 47 and Crime By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin Oct 28, 2015 Reports of increases in violent crime in some areas have raised concerns. But it would be premature to blame Proposition 47.
blog post Video: Rating Realignment By Linda Strean Oct 7, 2015 Local law enforcement and corrections officials have risen to the challenge of California’s public safety realignment, a panel of local and state officials concluded last week. They also concurred that big challenges remain.
event What Do We Know about Realignment’s Impact So Far? Oct 2, 2015 About the ProgramThe fourth anniversary of California’s historic public safety realignment offers an opportunity to assess its major impacts. Has the shift of responsibility for lower-level felons from the state to counties eased prison overcrowding and contained costs? How are county jails coping, and have reoffending rates declined? Has crime increased, as critics predicted? PPIC researcher Magnus Lofstrom will outline the findings of a new report and a panel of state and local experts will discuss realignment’s effect on crime, costs, and incarceration.
press release Likely Voters Divided on Temporary Extension of Proposition 30—Most Support Cigarette Tax Sep 30, 2015
Report Public Safety Realignment: Impacts So Far By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin Sep 28, 2015 Prompted by a federal court order to reduce prison overcrowding, California’s 2011 historic public safety realignment shifted many correctional responsibilities for lower-level felons from the state to counties. The reform was premised on the idea that locals can do a better job, and it was hoped that incarceration rates and corrections costs would fall. At the same time, critics predicted crime would rise. Four years since its implementation, realignment has made several important impacts: Realignment significantly reduced the prison population, but the state did not reach the court-mandated population target until after the passage of Proposition 47 in November 2014, which reduced penalties for many property and drug offenses. The reform challenged county jails and probation departments by making them responsible for a greater number of offenders with a broader range of backgrounds and needs. The county jail population did not rise nearly as much as the prison population fell, reducing the total number of people incarcerated in California. Realignment did not increase violent crime, but auto thefts rose. Research so far shows no dramatic change in recidivism rates. State corrections spending remains high, but there is reason to believe expenditures could drop in the future. Realignment has largely been successful, but the state and county correctional systems face significant challenges. The state needs to regain control of prison medical care, which is now in the hands of a federal receiver. And the state and counties together must make progress in reducing stubbornly high recidivism rates.
Report Pretrial Detention and Jail Capacity in California By Sonya Tafoya Jul 22, 2015 California’s persistently overcrowded jails are facing additional challenges now that public safety realignment has shifted many lower-level offenders from state prisons to county supervision. Jail capacity challenges are prompting a reconsideration of California’s heavy reliance on holding unsentenced defendants in jail pending trial—known as pretrial detention. The legal rationale for pretrial detention is to ensure court appearances and preserve public safety. But California’s high rates of pretrial detention have not been associated with lower rates of failure to appear or lower levels of felony rearrests. This report concludes that pretrial services programs—if properly implemented and embraced by the courts, probation, and the jails—could address jail overcrowding and improve the efficiency, equitability, and transparency of pretrial release decision making.
blog post Video: Realignment and Crime By David Lesher May 26, 2015 PPIC researchers presented their report showing that property crime remains higher than it would have been without realignment. But there has been no observable impact on violent crime.
