Friday, August 2, 2013

Statement by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez on Supreme Court Decision To Release Prisoners Early


SAN DIEGO – (Friday, August 2, 2013) – California State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) made the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to deny the State of California’s attempt to block the court-mandated early release of prisoners.

“It is very unfortunate that Supreme Court has risked the safety of our communities in this recent decision. As the state noted in its argument, no data suggests that a sudden release of inmates with these characteristics can be done safely and no state has ever done it. I believe the state demonstrated a very strong case against early release, both in improved prison conditions but also in the negative impacts that realignment has had on public safety in California. It’s one thing to maintain a fair standard for the men and women who are incarcerated, but our state should not be expected to risk all of our essential public safety needs for the well-being of criminals. A long-term solution to prevent this false choice is needed.”


1 comment:

IllegalSmile said...

The state has had years to solve this problem. The panel of judges convened almost a decade ago. Prison reform was ignored. It is rediculous to expect people to believe early release is the only solution. Early release is a scare tactic used by the pols when the state feels under too much pressure to affect real solutions that don't involve building more prisons. We could have slowed down on the number of prisoners going into prison for non-violent crimes years ago. The doors to prison open and close from both sides, yet everytime the state loses in court they trot out this the-sky-is-falling, early release nonsense to cover up the fact that no reform has taken place.