State Prison Realignment Program

Details: Category: Community News; Published on Thursday, 13 October 2011 21:51; Written by Carla Pineda

What It Means to Our Community

Budget pressures and a Supreme Court decision are forcing federal prisons to lower their populations by 30,000 prisoners creating much community concern and rumor. Known as the ‘State Prison Realignment Program’ federal prisons will be transferring responsibility for lower-level offenders to local correctional systems.

A common misconception is that prisoners will soon be flooding our streets. The County Probation Dept. has been tasked with administering these new changes and L.A. County’s Chief Probation Officer Donald H. Blivens hopes to correct misunderstandings about this program on the Probation Department’s website: “It is a common misconception that the Public Safety Realignment Act of 2011 will let inmates out of prison” explains Bliven. “In fact, all inmates will serve out their entire sentence in prison.”

What is changing is the way the lower level offenders (non-violent, non-serious non-sex offender) will be handled. They will no longer be transferred to State prisons to complete their sentences but will serve their time in local county jails. One of the primary changes will affect how the prisoner is handled in the “post release process” or parole.

Low level offenders will no longer by supervised by the State Parole system. Instead they will be handled by local city or county parole systems within California. The programs official start date was October 1. The County Probation statement reiterates that “State Parole will continue to supervise current serious or violent felons, 3rd strike offenders, a high-risk sex offender and mentally disordered offenders.”

Despite the reassurances that the Act maintains public safety as a priority it is seen by experts merely as a shift of the budget problem. The $6 million of state funds accompanying the probation transfer in L.A. County is estimated by some to fall short by 50% from what is actually needed to assist new parolees.

Anticipating an overloaded probation department, local agencies and churches acknowledge that it may be left largely to them to assist the parolees. One of these organizations prepared to help young parolees effectively re-establish themselves in local society is the Youth Justice Coalition, an Inglewood organization serving offenders in a broad region, including Mid-City. Responding to what they see as inadequate representation of youth, families and community in the County’s own ‘re-entry plan’, the YJC have developed an extensive re-entry blueprint of their own called “Welcome Home L.A.”, incorporating the input of current, and formerly-incarcerated youth and their families, liberated lifers, victims and other community and faith-based organizations YJC staffer Paulette Ford is quick to describe the upcoming transfer of paroled offenders in human terms, having served several sentences herself for drug-related crimes up to 1999. A former member of the Mid-City Stoner gang, Ford now serves in the YJC under the official title of “Gang Interventionist and Peace-Builder.” Ford worries that parolees transferring in numbers into an overburden correctional system, will be more challenged than ever not to fall into recidivism: “You’ve got all these people out there without resources and how are they going to change? Where are they going to live? Where are we sending them? Downtown to live on the streets?”

Growing up in the Arlington Heights area near Venice and Normandy Blvds, Ford is concerned that local charities and agencies are ill-equipped to meet the sudden demands of so many new parolees: “Parolees have often lost friends and relationships. Their families have been displaced, or sometimes they’re not welcomed back home. They’re starting all over again. Without a good support group standing by, they are not positioned for successful return to local society at all.” One of the “16 Core Reentry Priorities” of the Welcome Home LA document is providing everyone with immediate access to the public documents they need for essential services, “The parolees lack clothes, money, jobs. Without an ID or social security card, they can’t do something as simple as write a check”, explains Ford. “It is very frustrating without a good support network standing by. My biggest concern is that they are coming home to nothing.” One of the YJC accomplishments is the Free LA High School partnership between the John Muir Charter School and the Workforce Investment Act to help young people earn a high school diploma and find work with a focus on careers in social justice movement. For a list of the dozens of organizations endorsing the YJC’s blueprint and to join the effort in promoting opportunities and respect for people returning home from lock-up , contact the Youth Justice Coalition at 323 235-4243 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.