Move to Build New Prison Beds: Another Setback for Prison Reform
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 21, 2006
CONTACTS:
John Lum 916-995-2379
Rose Braz 510-435-6809
The Governor’s move comes as a federal court is threatening to place a cap on the number of people California can lock up. The cap will bring the State into compliance with its own rules for cities and counties. “What the proponents of the Governor’s plan ignore is that building is not immediate solution to anything. The last prison built by CDCR was approved in 1999 but did not open until 2005. The only immediate solution to the problem is to reduce the number of people in prison,” said University of Southern California Professor Ruth Wilson Gilmore, an expert on the CDCR.
The Governor’s plan will purportedly also include the creation of a Sentencing Commission that could recommend, but not enact, changes to sentencing laws and the plan will consider revising California’s parole policy that, unlike other states, currently places everyone who serves a prison sentence on parole. “But, California is again putting prison construction in front of reform. An effective and empowered Sentencing Commission that would include all stakeholders, including those who have been in prison and their families, and comprehensive parole reforms should be established first. Then, we could avoid building more prison, jail and juvenile detention beds,” said John Lum, Public Policy Coordinator for Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB).
“There are literally hundreds of ways we can reduce the prison population and increase public safety. If California simply reduced the rate at which we send people to prison for violations of parole to the national average, we could reduce the number of people locked up in this state by more than 20,000 people,” says Laura Magnani of the American Friends Service Committee, members of CURB. California sends approximately 60,0000 people to prison every year solely for violations of parole.
“The Governor is ignoring the will of the people of California. We repeatedly turn down new prison construction at the ballot box and numerous polls find that Californians favor shrinking our state prison system, not expanding it,” said Yvonne Cooks, Executive Director of the California Coalition for Women Prisoners.
The Governor’s proposal comes despite four recent statewide polls of likely voters which all found that Californians favor cuts to prison spending over any other area of the state budget. And, the last two times California voters were asked to approve prison construction bonds, they were overwhelmingly rejected. A May 2006 poll found that 61% believed that “we have built enough jails in California and now need to consider alternative ways to rehabilitate non-violent criminals, including treatment programs that help them get back into society.”
Critics also attacked the Governor’s plan to use controversial lease revenue bond funding. “The only reason to build prisons using lease revenue bonds is because everyone knows voters oppose more prison construction,” noted Rose Braz of Critical Resistance, also members of CURB. “The polls say only 3% of Californians prioritize prison construction. Using a lease-revenue bond is more expensive but allows politicians to make an end run around voters.”
Heidi Strupp, a member of the CDC-R’s Gender Responsive Strategies Commission representing Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, shared her concerns about a proposal to build a new system of mini-women’s prisons: "As a prison watchdog agency, our organization has spent the past 27 years monitoring conditions in California’s women’s prisons. Not once has building more prisons helped women and their families. Instead, expansion has only led to more prisons, more problems, and more suffering."
“The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has many problems. Building more prison cells won’t solve any of them,” said Braz.
Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB) is a broad based statewide coalition of over 40 organizations committed to curbing prison spending by reducing the number of people in prison and closing prisons.
Rose Braz
Campaign Director
Critical Resistance
1904 Franklin Street, Suite 504
Oakland, CA 94612
510.444.0484
rose@criticalresistance.org
December 21, 2006
CONTACTS:
John Lum 916-995-2379
Rose Braz 510-435-6809
Move to Build New Prison Beds: Another Setback for Prison Reform
Real reform would obliterate the need for more prison beds and save the state billions
Real reform would obliterate the need for more prison beds and save the state billions
SACRAMENTO- Despite broad public opposition and a multi-billion dollar budget deficit, the Governor is proposing dramatically expanding the state’s disastrous and costly prison system. In his third plan in 12 months, the Governor calls for building over 40,000 new prison, jail and juvenile detention beds without voter approval. The scheme gives a $10 billion credit card to the notoriously mismanaged Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).
The Governor’s move comes as a federal court is threatening to place a cap on the number of people California can lock up. The cap will bring the State into compliance with its own rules for cities and counties. “What the proponents of the Governor’s plan ignore is that building is not immediate solution to anything. The last prison built by CDCR was approved in 1999 but did not open until 2005. The only immediate solution to the problem is to reduce the number of people in prison,” said University of Southern California Professor Ruth Wilson Gilmore, an expert on the CDCR.
The Governor’s plan will purportedly also include the creation of a Sentencing Commission that could recommend, but not enact, changes to sentencing laws and the plan will consider revising California’s parole policy that, unlike other states, currently places everyone who serves a prison sentence on parole. “But, California is again putting prison construction in front of reform. An effective and empowered Sentencing Commission that would include all stakeholders, including those who have been in prison and their families, and comprehensive parole reforms should be established first. Then, we could avoid building more prison, jail and juvenile detention beds,” said John Lum, Public Policy Coordinator for Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB).
“There are literally hundreds of ways we can reduce the prison population and increase public safety. If California simply reduced the rate at which we send people to prison for violations of parole to the national average, we could reduce the number of people locked up in this state by more than 20,000 people,” says Laura Magnani of the American Friends Service Committee, members of CURB. California sends approximately 60,0000 people to prison every year solely for violations of parole.
“The Governor is ignoring the will of the people of California. We repeatedly turn down new prison construction at the ballot box and numerous polls find that Californians favor shrinking our state prison system, not expanding it,” said Yvonne Cooks, Executive Director of the California Coalition for Women Prisoners.
The Governor’s proposal comes despite four recent statewide polls of likely voters which all found that Californians favor cuts to prison spending over any other area of the state budget. And, the last two times California voters were asked to approve prison construction bonds, they were overwhelmingly rejected. A May 2006 poll found that 61% believed that “we have built enough jails in California and now need to consider alternative ways to rehabilitate non-violent criminals, including treatment programs that help them get back into society.”
Critics also attacked the Governor’s plan to use controversial lease revenue bond funding. “The only reason to build prisons using lease revenue bonds is because everyone knows voters oppose more prison construction,” noted Rose Braz of Critical Resistance, also members of CURB. “The polls say only 3% of Californians prioritize prison construction. Using a lease-revenue bond is more expensive but allows politicians to make an end run around voters.”
Heidi Strupp, a member of the CDC-R’s Gender Responsive Strategies Commission representing Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, shared her concerns about a proposal to build a new system of mini-women’s prisons: "As a prison watchdog agency, our organization has spent the past 27 years monitoring conditions in California’s women’s prisons. Not once has building more prisons helped women and their families. Instead, expansion has only led to more prisons, more problems, and more suffering."
“The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has many problems. Building more prison cells won’t solve any of them,” said Braz.
--30--
Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB) is a broad based statewide coalition of over 40 organizations committed to curbing prison spending by reducing the number of people in prison and closing prisons.
Rose Braz
Campaign Director
Critical Resistance
1904 Franklin Street, Suite 504
Oakland, CA 94612
510.444.0484
rose@criticalresistance.org
posted by Noel at 10:18 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home