HERE'S A RECIPE FOR CALIFORNIA PRISON REFORM

Squeezed by the pressures of a federal lawsuit and a crushing budget
deficit, California must finally face the reality of its ineffective,
bloated prison system.

State leaders must reduce the prison population by about 40,000
people, still leaving more than 130,000 in prison. The question is:
Can this be done in a way that protects public safety? Yes. But to do
this, the state must provide the people leaving prison with treatment
and services, and it must invest in programs and strategies proven to
create opportunities and build communities.

Current proposals have California trying to get by through tweaking
the system to whittle away at the edges of the problem. Certainly
adjusting some categories of offenses that now have excessive
sentences, by changing them from felonies to misdemeanors, is a
needed reform. But this isn't enough to significantly reduce prison
population and costs.

What more substantial steps should California take? First and
foremost, it should help keep people who have been released from going back.

California has already taken steps toward reforming its parole
system, which may help reduce recidivism rates. Research shows that
more people are successful on parole when parole officers' successes
are measured by the number of people who successfully re-enter the
community, not by how many the officers send back to prison. It also
helps when parolees aren't excessively burdened by meaningless rules
and excessive requirements that don't address their needs or have any
public safety benefits. Levels of parole supervision should be
matched to the person's risk of committing another crime and to the
person's needs for treatment and services.

If the state is to see sustained decreases in prison populations, it
should increase - not slash - funding for drug treatment and
rehabilitation programs. Untreated addiction and mental illness is
pushing the revolving door that has become the incarceration
experience for thousands of Californians.

Research in Washington state found that for every dollar spent on
drug treatment, the state received $18 in benefits in terms of public
safety. Those who receive adequate treatment can become productive
community members, earning income, paying taxes and child support,
and being active, positive parents.

Too often policymakers think putting public safety first means
filling prisons and jails. In these tight economic times, increased
incarceration means decreased funding for other programs. Spending on
education, housing and employment can have a tremendous influence on
reducing crime and building safer and healthier communities.

Data shows that a 5 percent increase in male high school graduation
rates would produce an annual savings of almost $5 billion nationally
in crime-related expenses. Coupled with annual earnings of those who
graduated, the state would receive more than $1 billion in benefits
from increased graduation rates.

What is needed is a real paradigm shift - one that focuses on
building individual and community assets for the future rather than
warehousing people. The time is now for California to reinvent its
approach to prisons and public safety.