Reducing the Ward and Parolee Populations at the Division of Juvenile Facilities

Overview of Division of Juvenile Facilities

Background. The Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF), the statutory name for the agency often referred to as the Division of Juvenile Justice, is responsible for the housing, supervision, and rehabilitation of individuals that have been committed to their custody. As a result of Chapter 175, Statutes of 2007 (SB 81, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), only juveniles who are violent, serious, or sex offenders are committed to DJF.

Characteristics of Wards. As of December 31, 2009, about 1,600 wards (generally ages 13 to 25, average age of 19) reside in DJF institutions. Males comprise about 95 percent of the ward population. Latinos account for roughly 60 percent of the total population, while African-Americans make up about 30 percent of the population. Whites and other races make up the remaining 10 percent.

Juvenile Facilities. The DJF is comprised of fi ve youth correctional facilities and two camps. Recently, DJF closed the Herman G. Stark Youth Correctional Facility in Chino...

The 2010-11 Budget: Assessing the Prison Population Reduction Proposal

As part of the January 2010 special session to begin bringing the 2009‑10 and 2010‑11 budgets into balance, the Governor proposes statutory changes to reduce the state’s inmate and parolee populations. Specifically, the Governor proposes to require that offenders who have no prior serious or violent offenses and are convicted of certain property and drug felony crimes serve a maximum sentence of one year and one day in county jail in lieu of a state prison sentence.

The administration estimates that, if approved by March 1, 2010, these changes would reduce state correctional costs by $25.2 million in 2009‑10 and $291.6 million in 2010‑11. In this brief, we (1) analyze the Governor’s proposal, particularly in the context of recent policy actions to reduce the inmate and parole populations, and (2) recommend modifying the Governor’s proposal to permit counties to place additional jail inmates on electronic home monitoring...

California Out-of-State Correctional Facility Program

Overview of Out-of-State Bed Program

Mission. The California Out-of-State Correctional Facility (COCF) program is administered by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). Its mission is to transfer inmates out of state for the purpose of temporarily alleviating overcrowding within existing state prisons.

Number of Inmates. The department currently has 8,021 male inmates housed in fi ve out-of-state facilities. Inmates housed in these facilities are generally highersecurity level inmates. Most inmates have been transferred involuntarily. Inmates with serious medical and mental health issues are generally excluded from the program...

Implementing AB 900’s Prison Construction & Rehabilitation Initiatives

On May 23, 2007, the Governor signed into law Chapter 7, Statutes of 2007 (AB 900, Solorio), in order to relieve the significant overcrowding problems facing state prisons. Specifically, AB 900 authorized a total of approximately $7.7 billion for a broad package of prison construction and rehabilitation initiatives. Prison Construction Projects ($7.7 Billion). The measure contained a number of significant provisions to finance the construction of both state prisons and county jail space using $7.4 billion in lease-revenue bonds and a $300 million General Fund appropriation...

Investigation: Richard A. McGee Correctional Training Center

On April 12, 2000, the Office of the Inspector General staff made an unannounced inspection of the Richard A. McGee Correctional Training Center. The inspection was conducted to assess recent allegations of destroying test results, altering test scores, class overcrowding, retaliation practices, and favortism. I would like to share with you a preliminary assessment of these issues. As our investigation is still in progress, please be advised that the assessment could be modified as additional data are gathered.