December 4, 2009
OC Register: CA’s Tough on crime stance caused state’s fiscal crisis?
August 20, Sacramento. It's a mild day for late summer, but the heat is on inside the State Capitol. After hours of debate, the State Senate has narrowly passed a controversial prison reform package.
The plan would reduce the state prison population by 27,000, providing desperately needed relief for a system holding 171,000 inmates–nearly twice capacity. The Republican governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, supports the plan, which reduces the penalties for some crimes and allows some convicts to serve their time at home.
Legislative Republicans, however, say the entire plan is soft on crime. That's enough to cause serious problems in the Assembly. Several Democrats there are eyeing higher office. Others face tough re-election bids. A "soft-on-crime" label could kill their political careers…
LINK - OCRegister.com
