There is currently pressure on the California legislature from law enforcement agencies to reduce or eliminate the Governor’s proposed $24,000 per youth fee structure for the Division of Juvenile Facilities. The state is already spending 20 – 25 times the per capita investment on youth offenders as it is on students in our UC, Cal State, K‑12, and community college systems. With an 80% recidivism rate, the Division of Juvenile Facilities should receive a failing grade yet legislators are being…
Blog May 24, 2012
Who is deciding California’s budget priorities?
This week, both the Senate and Assembly budget subcommittees on pubic safety held hearings on Governor Brown’s revised proposal for the state’s youth correctional facilities, Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF). Under heavy pressure from law enforcement associations, the Governor backed down from his January proposal to close the front door of the DJF and allow the youth offender population to decrease through attrition. In its place, the Governor has proposed a new annual $24,000 per ward…
May 24, 2012
The Not-So-Shared Sacrifice of Californians
The Not-So-Shared Sacrifice of Californians California Progress Report, May 24, 2012
Blog May 22, 2012
Inequality in America
As promised in my last blog , I will summarize the current level of inequality in the United States. In a word, it is ugly! By most measures, we are far behind other democratic societies, such as Canada, most European countries and Australia. One of the most common measures of income inequality is known as the Gini Index of Inequality (a value of 0 means perfect equality – everyone earns the same amount; and a value of 100 means perfect inequality – one person earns all), has gone up since…
May 21, 2012
Governor now wants to keep juvenile lockups open
Governor now wants to keep juvenile lockups open San Francisco Chronicle, May 20, 2012
Blog May 17, 2012
CJCJ response to Governor Brown’s May budget revise
On May 14, 2012 Governor Brown released the May revision to the budget for fiscal year 2012⁄13. The revision retracted both his original proposal for full juvenile justice realignment and the budget triggers that were implemented last year. The revised budget includes important juvenile justice reform measures. The proposal institutes a $24,000 annual per youth fee for utilizing state facilities; representing 13% of the total cost. As overuse of state facilities by some counties has created…
May 16, 2012
Who’s crowding California’s jails
Who’s crowding California’s jails KPCC, May 15, 2012
Blog May 16, 2012
Social class and education
In my last blog I discussed the importance of social class as a determinant of everything that matters in life. In this blog I quote a study that stated “Poverty and social disadvantage are most strongly associated with deficits in children’s cognitive skills and educational achievements.” Social class strongly correlates with the level of education one receives including the probability of dropping out, which in turn strongly relates to crime and delinquency. Two recent studies further…
In 2010, 71 percent of California’s jail population were those offenders who were unsentenced and awaiting resolution of their cases. This figure not only exceeds the pretrial detainee national average, but also represents a major shift away from the traditional use of jails where inmates are detained as a form of punishment. However, many of these pretrial detainees are not being held because they have been determined to be a danger to society or represent a flight risk. Rather, they remain…
May 14, 2012
Bullying not gay teens’ key problem
Bullying not gay teens’ key problem Politico, May 11, 2012
May 11, 2012
Misconceptions about high-risk youth offenders
Misconceptions about high-risk youth offenders California Progress Report, May 11, 2012
Blog May 10, 2012
Misconceptions about high-risk youth offenders
The High Desert Daily Press featured a three-part story last week exploring how San Bernardino County prosecutes, supervises, and rehabilitates their juvenile offenders. Daily Press reporter Beatriz E. Valenzuela looked at patterns of juvenile crime and arrest reductions, the unbridled powers of local district attorneys to “direct file” juveniles into adult court , and the impact of adult realignment and Governor Brown’s juvenile realignment plan on local corrections systems. The facts…