Extend Prop 47 Bill!

Are you aware that Proposition 47 (The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act) has a time limitation? Also, are you aware that there are at least 1 million Californians that may be eligible under Proposition 47 to change their felony convictions? 

Well, just in case the awareness is not there, Proposition 47 can do a numerous amount of good for non-violent criminals, only if it is allowed to do so. 

Furthermore, Proposition 47 (The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act) will be coming to a complete halt in November 2017, if AB 2765 (Weber) does not get amended to extend the bill, or eliminate the Proposition 47 deadline to petition for a sentence reduction. 

Most important, AB 2765 (Weber) was introduced on February 19, 2016, to extend the Proposition 47 bill time limitation for petitioning, and is required to have 2/3 votes of the Legislature to amend the act. 

In fact, since then, the bill has passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee by a vote of 5 to 2, on April 19, 2016, and will now proceed to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. 

Congratulations, AB 2765 (Weber)!!!!! 

Altogether, let's make sure that we support this bill, and provide the pertinent information to the population of people that this bill can truly have an impact on. 

We have to band together for this!

By: 

Porscha N. Dillard

Special Project Coordinator

Time For Change Foundation

A Great Act - Public Safety & Rehabilitation Act of 2016

Great news! An incredible act called the Public Safety & Rehabilitation Act of 2016 (PSRA) is trying to improve public safety, and save California taxpayers money by reducing frivolous spending on our correctional system. One pivotal point of this act, is to transfer the power back to the judge and away from the District Attorney, to decide whether a minor of 14 years of age or older should be tried as an adult. Key factors have to be considered when making this decision such as: the minor's family and school life. It has to be a clear process to decide the outcome of the minor’s life.

Next, for those who are incarcerated with non-violent offenses, Public Safety & Rehabilitation Act of 2016 will add funds for rehabilitation, and will give credit for completion of educational programs with an early release. Ultimately, it is the next step to improve Prop 47.

Altogether, 1 million signatures need to be collected in order for this act to make it on the ballot in November. Governor Brown supports and is willing to sign this act, but requested 100,000 signatures by the end of April 2016 be gathered.  

Equally important, collaborative help is needed for the collection of the mandatory signatures from all that are in support of this act. Let’s be overt, prison reform is needed in the state of California, and this is a productive step towards obtaining that goal. 

For more information or to support the (PSRA) contact Vanessa Rhodes at vanessarhodes@gmail.com or visit SafetyandRehabilitation.com.

By: 

Porscha N. Dillard

Special Project Coordinator 

Time For Change Foundation

Analyst estimates $100 million more in Prop. 47 savings than Brown

The Legislature’s non-partisan fiscal analyst believes Gov. Jerry Brown is underestimating the amount of savings from Proposition 47, the controversial ballot initiative that reduced some nonviolent drug and property crimes from felonies to misdemeanors.

The initiative required the savings be used for mental health, drug treatment, truancy and victim services. In a report issued Friday, the Legislative Analyst’s Office estimated that the first deposit should be about $100 million more than what the state Department of Finance has accounted for.

In his January budget proposal, Brown set aside $29.3 million for the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund – $62.7 million in savings from inmate and caseload reduction, minus $33.4 million for resentencing and increased parole capacity.

The vast gap is mainly due to different methods for calculating prison costs. Thousands of inmates have been resentenced and released from state facilities under Proposition 47, pushing California’s overcrowded corrections system just under a court-mandated capacity.

Brown’s budget estimates that the average daily inmate population is about 4,700 fewer this year because of the law. But the Legislative Analyst’s Office noted that, to stay below capacity levels, most of those potential prisoners would have had to be contracted out to beds in other states, which would have set the state back an additional $83 million.

The LAO also said the governor is likely underestimate the savings from fewer felony cases being filed and overestimating the cost of reclassifying the records of former offenders who already served out their felony terms.

Via: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article60119951.html 

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article60119951.html#storylink=cpy

L.A. County Board of Supervisors Form Prop. 47 Task Force

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to form a task force to help non-violent ex-cons update their records under Proposition 47 and to link them to jobs and services.

Proposition 47 — dubbed by supporters the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act — was approved by 59.6 percent of California voters in 2014. It reduced some non-violent drug and property crimes — such as shoplifting, receiving stolen property and writing bad checks of less than $950 — from felonies to misdemeanors.

Supervisors Hilda Solis and Mark Ridley-Thomas proposed the task force and Solis said it would bolster public safety.

“The primary purpose of the motion today is to reduce crime,” Solis said. “Jail and prison have become a revolving door.”

The task force will focus on connecting individuals coming out of jail and prison with jobs, housing, health care and mental health and substance abuse treatment and finding funding for those services.

“For the last 40 years, our broken criminal justice system has drained communities like South Los Angeles,” said Karren Lane of the Community Coalition of policies that doled out harsh punishments for drug and other non-violent offenses.

Solis highlighted the barriers faced by ex-offenders.

“Having a felony conviction makes it difficult to get work, to get housing, to get services and to put your life back together,” Solis told her colleagues.

Public Defender Ronald L. Brown said individuals in prison and jail suffer disproportionately from mental illness and substance abuse and told the board that treatment is critical to success outside of jail.

“Prisons don’t encourage inmates to address their drug problems,” Brown said.

Proponents say the proposition provides a more just penalty for low-level offenders. Anticipated savings from the law are intended to be spent on mental health and substance abuse treatment, truancy and dropout prevention and victim services.

“I think what we’re talking about is a hand up, not a hammer down,” said Bruce Brodie of the county’s office of Alternate Public Defender.

Other backers point to how Prop 47 has alleviated prison overcrowding and allowed more serious offenders to serve a greater proportion of their sentence.

However, opponents say Prop 47 puts dangerous criminals who should be behind bars out on the streets.

Supervisor Michael Antonovich pointed to criminals who are released only to commit new crimes, citing the example of one man who had been arrested 22 times after his initial release.

“Violent crime is up 4.2 percent,” Antonovich said.

Supervisor Sheila Kuehl challenged the idea that the proposition was linked to higher crime rates.

“There has been a lot of rhetoric about Prop 47 and a rise in crime rates and it’s just that, rhetoric. There is no data,” Kuehl said.

Kuehl said San Diego County hasn’t seen a rise in crime since Prop 47 became effective.

There are roughly 695,000 Los Angeles County residents who are eligible to apply to change their criminal records under Prop 47, according to Brown, who told the board that his office is overwhelmed by the need to help ex-offenders “become employed, tax-paying citizens of this county.”

One community advocate said many of those eligible were unaware of the potential to change their lives.

“Two out of three people who qualify for Prop 47 are not even aware” it exists, said Amber Rose Howard of All of Us or None.

The task force was also charged with trying to extend the deadline to apply for a criminal record change, currently set for Nov. 3, 2017.

The board directed staffers from the Office of Diversion and Re-Entry to work with the city of Los Angeles’ Office of Reentry to push for the region’s share of state funding from Prop 47 savings. A report back is expected in six months.

The board also asked the Auditor-Controller to audit the county’s savings as a result of Prop 47.

Here’s how jail-based health treatment failed my family: Guest commentary

As the child of a formerly incarcerated person, I’ve lived with the consequences of a failed law-enforcement system that believes jails can be places for rehabilitative treatment and care. This illusion eventually cost my dad his life.

My dad was a poor man of color raised in the smallest city in Los Angeles County. He served long sentences for drug-related crimes and parole violations. Being locked up exacerbated his existing physical and mental health issues. There were no services to greet him at the gate when he was released, and so imprisonment became law enforcement’s version of treatment. When he tried to find a job and a home, he was rejected at every turn because of his felony record.

At a meeting in Sacramento earlier this month, the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC), a small board dominated by law-enforcement officials, appointed the chairs of the committee who will recommend where to spend the millions of dollars of savings generated through Proposition 47, the law passed one year ago that reclassifies certain low-level crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. Sixty five percent of this money must be allocated to diversion, mental health, and substance use treatment programs, giving California an opportunity to improve health outcomes for thousands of families.

But at that same meeting, despite testimonials from dozens of community members like myself whose lives have been harmed by incarceration, the BSCC voted to allocate $500 million in jail construction funds to counties across the state. Given that many of these new jail projects are being promoted as mental health treatment centers, sheriffs may soon be lining up to make the case for needing Prop. 47 funds to run these facilities. Awarding funds to expand jails makes no sense when national conversations have turned toward reducing jail populations.

The committee appointed by the BSCC to direct spending of Prop. 47 funds has the power to ensure that those savings go to treatment and care in the community, changing the culture surrounding substance use and mental health. This is the approach that finally worked for my dad.

When my dad was released for the last time in 2007, it was support from other formerly incarcerated people also grappling with substance-use and mental health conditions that helped him stay out of jail. He found his way to Homes for Life, a community-based organization in Southern California providing affordable housing and counseling for homeless and mentally-ill people. Living in a caring community empowered him to enroll in Long Beach City College’s Substance Abuse and Addiction Counseling degree program. It is bittersweet knowing that my dad didn’t find the resources he needed until he was 50 because society prioritizes punishment over healing.

Driving home to Southern California from Oakland this past spring, I prepared myself to see my dad for the first time in 20 years. It would also be the last time. I wept reflecting on 20 years of lost opportunities for our family because a poor brown man’s health conditions made him a criminal.

The real crime is the failure of law enforcement to know the difference between health care and incarceration. There is no happy ending to our story. My dad died without realizing his capacity to be a father and contribute to his community. I only find solace knowing he left this world trying to be the best person he could be.

My dad’s story is not exceptional. Families and neighborhoods continue to be torn apart by the same system that claims keeping communities safe means building more cages for people, when what they really need is comprehensive health care not administered by law enforcement.

Instead of accepting money for new jails, counties should reject the funding and give people with mental health and substance use conditions what my dad didn’t get: a fair chance at health, and a fair chance at life.

Angela Aguilar is a masters in public health candidate and a doctoral student in ethnic studies at the University of California, Berkeley.
Via: http://www.dailynews.com/opinion/20151124/heres-how-jail-based-health-treatment-failed-my-family-guest-commentary

California Funds New Prisons Despite Prop 47 Passage to Reduce Inmates

California officials voted on Thursday to divert US$500 million to open new jails, replacing jail beds with medical and mental health beds. Criminal justice and civil rights activists protested the decision, which counters the purpose of the popular Proposition 47, passed last year to re-classify low-level felonies to misdemeanors and redirect funds to reduce recidivism.

“Californians didn't vote for Prop 47 so that we could reduce prison populations just to begin building new jails,” said Kim Carter, executive director of Time for Change Foundation, in a press release from Californians United for a Responsible Budget. According to Carter, the Board of State and Community Corrections, responsible for the vote, “should take the money they want to spend on jails and build some affordable housing,” she said, adding that “Reducing recidivism and increasing public safety means people need access to housing and jobs, not jail beds."

Prop. 47 aims to reduce prison populations in a state with severe overcrowding, designating extra funds to programs like "school truancy and dropout prevention, victim services, mental health and drug abuse treatment." At the same meeting, the BSCC began forming a committee to decide the distribution of Prop. 47 funds. Activists against jail expansion submitted their 14 candidates, all formerly incarcerated experts on substance use treatments, reentry programming, housing and mental health treatment. Currently the BSCC is largely made up of opponents of Prop. 47.

Though the BSCC announced that it would fund the new jail projects with funds from another bill, its administrative powers were expanded last month by Governor Jerry Brown. Proponents of Prop. 47 worry that it would look to using their own funds, and community members of the cities in question, spread across 15 countries, fear less funds for local social services.

Other states that passed similar laws have seen crime rates decrease, but a year into passing Prop. 47, crime rates vary across the state, according to a report released by the American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday. While some law enforcement authorities proposed innovative diversion programs, others escalated arrests to account for a perceived rise in petty crime. The report accounted for the differences in the priorities of officers and their departments.

The effects of Prop. 47 are too early to measure, but it is estimated to lower prison costs by US$150 million this fiscal year. The BSCC measure would eliminate 310 jail beds, but it would add 196 new ones, which some worry would not fulfill their definition of mental health treatment. This content was originally published by teleSUR at the following address:

Via TeleSur http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/California-Funds-New-Prisons-Despite-Law-to-Reduce-Prison-Population-20151112-0039.html

Meet the Community's Prop 47 Executive Steering Committee Members

Yesterday the California Board of State and Community Corrections decided to waste $500 million on new jails, and nominate the chair for the ‪Prop47 ‬Executive Committee. Formerly incarcerated leaders from across the state are standing up for investing in care in the community not, cops and cages.

The Community's Prop 47 Funding Committee includes:
Darris Young & John from the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
Dayvon Williams from Youth Justice Coalition
Deirdre Wilson from California Coalition for Women Prisoners
Dolores Canales from the Family Unity Network
Dorsey Nunn from Legal Services for Prisoners With Children
George Galvis from Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice
Jayda Rasberry from Dignity and Power Now
Jerry Elster from American Friends Service Committee
Kim Carter from Time for Change Foundation
Rosie Flores from California Partnership
Sammy Nunez from Fathers & Families of San Joaquin
Tracy Jones from Justice Now
Vonya Quarles from Riverside "All of Us or None"

Meet the Community's Prop 47 Executive Steering Committee 14 Proposed Members

The Proposition 47 Executive Steering Committee (ESC) is charged with directing 65% of the state’s savings to fund mental health treatment, substance abuse treatment and diversion programs. Historically, the process by which the agency creates ESC’s has lacked transparency and public engagement, resulting in committees that are often dominated by law enforcement. That’s why the community has put together our proposed slate of ESC members to guide Prop 47 reinvestment. This 14 member panel is comprised entirely of formerly incarcerated leaders from across California who are experts in substance abuse treatment, reentry programing, housing, and mental health treatment. These are experts that California needs to guarantee that savings are used to build the capacity of community-based programs that will support the communities most damaged by mass incarceration.

Via: http://ow.ly/UCthF 

Time for Change Foundation Celebrates the One Year Anniversary of Prop 47 Passage

November 4th marks one year since California voters passed Proposition 47, which gives thousands of people across the Inland Empire a chance to reduce low level felonies to misdemeanors. 

Time for Change Foundation (TFCF) has been working to ensure that this victory translates into real change for local families. This includes doing public education and outreach at two major events this week: the first at a Holiday Job Fair organized by Congressman Pete Aguilar's office on Friday, November 6th from 9am to 12pm and at the Inland Empire Concerned African American Churches Health Fair on Saturday, November 7th from 10am to 2pm.

Earlier this year, Time for Change Foundation launched Creating Health Alternatives Mobilizing Prop 47 or CHAMP 47. People like Diane Sapp, resident of San Bernardino, have benefitted from a legal clinic that TFCF hosted in July and other informational events. "All of the felony convictions in my record held me back for several years," shares Diane. "It meant always submitting job applications and never hearing back." It wasn't until the July legal clinic when she was able to reduce 3 of her convictions, 2 drug related and 1 burglary related to misdemeanors. "I couldn't believe it finally happened. I was so happy because next I can file for a dismissal."

These record changes can help people in their job searches, securing apartments, receiving several professional licenses, student loans, and certain housing and government benefits so they can end generational cycles of incarceration.

In addition, Prop 47 ensures savings from lower incarceration at the state level and the county level will be spent on crime prevention and treatment for both drug addictions and the mentally ill. A study by Stanford Law's Justice Advocacy Project finds 4,454 state prisoners have been released since the law passed. The project also found that it will keep 3,300 offenders out of prison every year, saving the state $93.4 million a year. The savings for the additional number of county jail prisoner to be released translates to an estimated $203 million across the state.

The Prop 47 petition window for felony reductions ends in 2 years on November 4 2017. Those eligible should act now and visit www.Timeforchangefoundation.org for the petition toolkit.

Prop 47 Informational Booths at the Following Two Events

Holiday Job Fair

Friday, November 6th 9am - 12pm

Inghram Community Center

2050 N. Mt Vernon Ave., San Bernardino, CA

IECAAC Wellness and Resource Fair

Saturday, November 7th 10am - 2pm

New Hope Family Life Center

1505. W. Highland Ave., San Bernardino, CA



Time for Change Foundation provides essential resources through our programs and services to families who desire to change the course of their lives by making the transition from homelessness and recidivism to self-sufficiency. We accept all forms of donations; please call our office for more information at 909-886-2994 or visit us on the web at www.Timeforchangefoundation.org.

Via: http://www.highlandnews.net/news/political/article_742b6248-823d-11e5-9439-57b38ca59e1b.html 

California public safety overhauls show promise, but problems remain

A contentious program that shifted control of some state prisoners to local governments dramatically reduced the prison population in California, but the decrease was not enough to meet a federal court order, according to a report released Monday.

It was only after statewide voters last fall approved reduced penalties for certain drug and property crimes that the prison population fell below the mandated target, said the new analysis by the Public Policy Institute of California. It has remained there since January, more than a year ahead of schedule.

Public safety realignment, launched four years ago, was considered one of Gov. Jerry Brown’s largest political and policy hurdles since he returned to the Governor’s Office in 2011. Brown, responding to the prison reduction order, argued that local authorities were better positioned to deal with alleviating the overcrowding crisis. But his critics, including law-and-order Republicans and some in law enforcement, asserted the changes would lead to a spike in crime.

PPIC makes no wholesale claims about the efficacy of the program. However, it provides a snapshot of its early effects as new reforms continue to take hold, including November’s successful Proposition 47 that changed most nonviolent property and drug crimes to misdemeanors from felonies.

“Realignment has largely been successful, but the state and county correctional systems face significant challenges,” wrote Magnus Lofstrom and Brandon Martin, the authors of the study. “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.”

The report found no dramatic change in recidivism rates. There also was no evidence that realignment has increased violent crime in California.

The lone area where crime increased was in auto thefts. Researchers estimate that the overhaul led to car thefts increasing by more than 70 per 100,000 residents. The car theft rate is about 17 percent higher than it would have been without realignment, the report states.

Although the realignment shift drove county jail populations close to historical highs, the program also has changed the profile of those incarcerated. The report found that by early 2014, some 1,761 inmates were serving sentences of more than five years, up from 1,155 in 2013.

Still, while county jail populations increased since 2011, the growth was far smaller than the prison population drop.

Researchers suggest various alternative crime-prevention strategies such as boosting policing, behavioral therapy and targeted intervention for high-risk youths.

Via: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article36881103.html 

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article36881103.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article36881103.html#storylink=cpy

Don't miss the Riverside Strong Communities Forum!

Los Angeles Record Change & Resource Fair

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2015

11:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Exposition Park

Los Angeles, CA 90037

Strong Communities Forum Inland Empire

Strong Communities Forum

Saturday, September 26, 2015

9: 00 am - 5:00 pm

The Hyatt Place 

3500 Market Street

Riverside, CA 92501

Free Live Scans for Record Change Fair

Location:

Center for Living and Learning

14549 Archwood Street, #221

Van Nuys, CA 91405

Date:

August 29, 2015

Time:

1:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Free Live Scans for Record Change Fair

Location:

Fred Brown Recovery Services

270 W. 14th Street

San Pedro, CA 90731

Date:

August 27, 2015

Time:

3:00 pm - 6:00 pm

SAVE THE DATE: Riverside Strong Communities Forum September 26th!

Save the Date!

The Riverside Strong Communities Forum is taking place on Saturday, September 26, 2015 from 9 am to 5 pm at the Hyatt Place in Downtown Riverside, California.

We are inviting organizations to share and receive the “best of the best” that community organizations, non-profits, colleges, and universities have to offer in the areas of re-entry, Prop 47 assistance, social services, employment opportunities, post conviction relief, civic engagement, social enterprises, alternatives to jails, and housing options for those who have been incarcerated and are now being released into the community.

We are featuring solutions that include 9 key areas of re-entry and more!

• HOUSING
• PUBLIC BENEFITS
• PAROLE & PROBATION
• EDUCATION
• UNDERSTANDING & CLEANING UP YOUR CRIMINAL RECORD
• BUILDING BLOCKS OF REENTRY: ID & VOTING
• FAMILY & CHILDREN
• COURT-ORDERED DEBT
• EMPLOYMENT

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Marie Smith

Community Organizer, Riverside All of Us or None

California prison population drops under Proposition 47, but public safety impact still unclear

Citrus Heights police Officer Wesley Herman recently arrested a parolee carrying stolen jewelry and a deceased man’s identification card.

If the property was valued at more than $950, the case was a felony that would let him take the man into custody. If not, it was a misdemeanor and he’d get a citation.

The first words out of his mouth, Herman said, were, “Am I going to jail?”

It’s been nine months since California voters approved a ballot measure reducing charges for some nonviolent drug and property crimes, and Herman says repeat offenders are getting savvy about the new limits of the law.

“These guys know that if they are running around with less than $950 of stolen property on them, they’re not going to jail,” he said. “They’re always trying to stay a step ahead of us.”

Continuing the recent trend away from decades of tough-on-crime policy, nearly 60 percent of voters last November supported Proposition 47, which reduced from felonies to misdemeanors offenses including drug possession for personal use. Savings on correctional spending, estimated to be hundreds of millions of dollars annually, is intended to go to mental health and drug treatment, anti-truancy efforts and victim services.

Only a spotty picture has emerged of the law’s early effects: Supporters celebrate that tens of thousands of current and former convicts have already had the felonies on their records changed to misdemeanors, opening up new opportunities for jobs, housing and public benefits. Police and prosecutors argue that it has made their jobs more difficult.

Communities across the state fret about the connection to spikes in crime, but those familiar with public safety statistics say it’s too soon to know whether anecdotes from the street are evidence that Proposition 47 is responsible.

“Law enforcement isn’t a place where change is readily embraced,” said Tom Hoffman, a longtime police officer and former director of California’s parole operations, who advised the Proposition 47 campaign. For this sentencing overhaul to succeed, it will take “a lot of time and a lot of patience and, quite candidly, a lot of courage.”

Proposition 47 has accomplished at least one of its objectives already.

As of this week, 4,347 inmates have been released from state prisons due to resentencing, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The releases helped push the overcrowded prison system below court-mandated capacity levels by February, a full year ahead of its deadline.

Many more individuals have successfully petitioned at the county level to have their records changed, including approximately 1,400 so far in Sacramento County. As some inmates are released from jail and cramped facilities clear out, more serious offenders are serving longer portions of their sentences.

“We want to be very careful about who we’re putting in a cage,” said Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, because incarceration can sometimes “work at cross-purposes” with those people turning their lives around.

Nearly 3,600 defendants in Santa Clara County have had their felonies reduced to misdemeanors since November. Rosen, one of only three district attorneys in California to endorse Proposition 47, said they are sending fewer people to prison for these crimes than before.

“The benefits to our society from locking up fewer nonviolent offenders will in the long run translate into safer communities, a better economy, and stronger services,” he said.

Increases in crime during the first half of the year, however, have raised early doubts in many communities.

Preliminary statistics for the city of Sacramento show a 25 percent rise in violent crime, including homicide, rape, robbery and aggravated assault, through June, compared with the same period in 2014. Property crimes, such as burglary and motor vehicle theft, are up about 5 percent, though larcenies have dropped slightly.

The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office has seen a 9 percent increase in filings so far this year for cases it is pursuing – an 11 percent drop in felonies offset by a 27 percent jump in misdemeanors.

Magnus Lofstrom, a researcher at the Public Policy Institute of California who has studied the impacts of realignment, cautioned against drawing conclusions from the data.

Upticks in violent and property crime rates during the first year of realignment caused similar concerns, Lofstrom said. With the exception of a boost in auto thefts, however, the spike was in line with increases in states that did not undergo realignment, and crime rates have since dropped again.

With a surge of releases under Proposition 47, “it’s fair to say it puts an upward pressure on crime rates” for the types of low-level offenses those inmates committed, he added. But he said it’s very difficult to attribute a particular change in law to a change in crime rates. Cities and counties vary in their staffing levels, law enforcement priorities and reentry services for released offenders.

Law enforcement officials feel more certain of the connection, pointing to “unintended consequences” of the law.

Herman of the Citrus Heights Police Department said Proposition 47 has limited the ability of police to respond to drug-related crimes.

Previously, he said, he was able to take someone to jail for simple possession, where at least “he’s going to be clean a few days.”

“Now you have to show that this is a crime heinous enough to take them out of the community,” he said.

Instead of being arrested, the suspect might instead receive a citation to appear in court in 30 days. Herman said that allows addicts to keep using – and potentially commit thefts to support their habit.

“It’s been difficult for us to prevent as many crimes as we could have before,” he said. “Our hands do sometimes get tied.”

The changes have also had a detrimental effect on California drug courts, according to prosecutors.

Those programs provide offenders with the option of seeking treatment for substance abuse rather than facing prison time. But without the “hammer” of a felony now hanging over them, Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert said, those arrested for drug-related crimes have little incentive to choose rehabilitation over the lesser charges.

“Logically, many of those people who have the addiction problems that we want to address are not going to avail themselves of that because it’s too much work,” she said, adding that it creates a “revolving door” for petty criminals to return to the streets and reoffend. “If you don’t have accountability for criminal behavior, there’s no reason not to commit that criminal behavior.”

The number of cases in Sacramento County’s two drug courts has fallen to 587 from 970 since the passage of Proposition 47. In Fresno County, one drug court has halved to 280 cases, while another lost all 80 of its participants.

San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos said proponents of the measure went about their aims in the wrong way. Established diversion programs in his county are collapsing – drug court participation is down 60 percent – and there are not yet resources to create new ones.

While 65 percent of any savings on correctional spending from Proposition 47 is earmarked for mental health and drug treatment programs to keep at-risk individuals out of custody, counties won’t see any of that money until August 2016, after the next budget cycle.

“What are they going to do in the meantime?” Ramos said. “They should have had a plan in place.”

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article30455739.html#storylink=cpy

Court Rules that Denial of Sentencing Relief to Juveniles is Unlawful

The 4th District Court of Appeal, in a stunning rebuke to San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, today ruled that Proposition 47’s sentencing reclassification provisions apply equally to children and adults.

San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis had sought to deprive juvenile offenders of the retroactive relief the initiative provides. Her office argued that juveniles are not eligible to have their past offenses reduced to misdemeanors, even though adults convicted of the same felonies may petition for such relief.

“Bonnie Dumanis, in her ongoing quest to mete out the harshest punishments to the most vulnerable San Diegans rather than pursue smart justice, disregarded the will of California voters and asked the Court to treat juveniles with misdemeanors as if they were felons,” said Margaret Dooley-Sammuli, director of the ACLU of California’s Criminal Justice and Drug Policy Project. “Had her unsupported reading of the law been upheld, it would have given prosecutors across the state the authority to do what many would consider unthinkable – criminalize children more harshly than adults.”

Proposition 47, a measure which passed with nearly 60% of the vote in November 2014, ended felony sentencing for six petty crimes, including simple drug possession and petty theft, and created a resentencing process for those certain felonies to be retroactively reclassified as misdemeanors.

The ACLU argued that denying juveniles the resentencing relief provided to adults with identical offenses, and denying these juveniles similar relief to that provided to juveniles charged after the initiative went into effect, violates juveniles’ equal protection rights under the California and U.S. Constitution.

“Today’s ruling makes the future a little brighter for many young people in San Diego. The Court recognized that juveniles have the same rights as adults under Proposition 47 and may petition to have eligible felony adjudications reclassified as misdemeanors. Such relief opens up doors in education, employment, and the military, and will assist those facing any future criminal or immigration proceedings,” said Chessie Thacher, an attorney at Keker & Van Nest. “Keker & Van Nest is very pleased to have been involved in this outcome and hopes the Court’s well-reasoned decision sets the stage for consideration of this issue across the state.”

It would be absurd for adults to enjoy rehabilitation as misdemeanants while children are punished with felony records and all the collateral consequences. “Doing so would not only run contrary to the rehabilitative purpose of the juvenile justice system, but would be an abdication of a district attorney’s responsibility to seek justice,” said Dooley-Sammuli. “And the Court has now confirmed it is unlawful, something that our district attorney should have known.”

After Proposition 47 passed and went into effect, a juvenile, Alejandro N., and 75 other children petitioned the court to ask that their offenses be reclassified as misdemeanors, thus minimizing the myriad negative consequences of a having a felony on their records. California and San Diego voters overwhelmingly approved the initiative that included the expressly retroactive resentencing and reclassification provisions in order to achieve the broadest relief possible for nonviolent, non-serious offenders.

The children’s cases were joined by the superior court after District Attorney Dumanis opposed them, arguing that Prop 47 should be read to treat child offenders more harshly than adults.

This is now the law of the state of California.

Via: https://www.aclunc.org/news/court-rules-denial-sentencing-relief-juveniles-unlawful

Prop 47 Felony Reduction Clinic July 25th

Join Time for Change Foundation this Saturday, July 25, 2015

from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Reduce the following felonies to misdemeanors:

- Receiving Stolen Property ($950 or less)

- Simple Drug Possession ($950 or less)

- Petty Theft/Grand Theft ($950 or less)

- Writing a Bad Check ($950 or less)

- Forgery/Fraud ($950 or less)

- Shoplifting ($950 or less)

Time for Change Foundation Hosting Prop 47 Felony Reduction Clinic

On Saturday July 25, Time for Change Foundation (TFCF) will be hosting their Creating Healthy Alternatives Mobilizing Prop 47 (CHAMP 47) Felony Reduction Clinic under the guidelines of Proposition 47. Their campaign is seeking to reach the thousands of residents in San Bernardino County that have the qualifying felonies on their record; simple drug possession, petty theft under $950, shoplifting under $950, forging or writing a bad check under $950, and receipt of stolen property under $950.

What Prop 47 is seeking to accomplish is to change policies that contribute to discrimination, racial disparities in low-income communities and communities of color, and invest in our communities.

TFCF believes in the value of “treatment, not punishment is the solution.” While the United States has the greatest number of incarcerated people in the world (prisonpolicy.org), and California recently coming into compliance with the federal mandate to reduce its prison population, Prop 47 was a huge step forward in the journey towards ending mass incarceration.

While spreading community awareness about the event, Time for Change Foundation spoke to many individuals and families that needed the assistance provided through Prop 47. “We see the faces of those who need it and the numbers are staggering,” said Civic Engagement Specialist, Vanessa Perez. “We anticipate a huge turnout at this event and look forward to people getting closer to obtain employment, which is the number one struggle for people that have these felonies.”

Time for Change seeks to lower recidivism rates and provide families with the opportunity to move forward in life. Many people assume that having a record is something that only affects the individual, yet hardly ever is just one person affected. The effects of prop 47, when made available to those who need it, can change the lived experiences of entire families.

TFCF believes in the power of this initiative and have hope in the short term and long term effects that it can have in California and ultimately our nation.

The Free Felony reduction Clinic that is being held at the Way World Outreach Downtown Mission in San Bernardino, gives people the opportunity to meet with a lawyer and have their records changed for free. The event will begin at 9:00 a.m. and end at 3:00 p.m. They encourage everyone that is eligible to attend and spread the word.


By Abry Elmassian, Intern

Prop 47 Information Clinic In the Inland Empire!

Please bring your rap sheet!

Saturday, June 13, 2015

10:00 am - 2:00 pm

Lifeway Church

7477 Vineyard Avenue

Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730