Thread: Brown must reduce California prison population, federal judges rule

Brown must reduce California prison population, judges rule

By Sharon Bernstein | Reuters – 7 hrs ago...

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A panel of three federal judges has roundly rejected California Governor Jerry Brown's contention that his state's prisons are no longer overcrowded, and ordered the state to continue to reduce its inmate population.

The judges, in an opinion issued on Thursday, denied the state's request to be released from a court-imposed cap that limits California's ability to hold more than roughly a third more prisoners than its facilities were built to house.

They also demanded that the state develop a detailed plan to carry out its order, due in three weeks, and in a strongly worded statement reminded Brown that he must comply with the court's orders.

"Specifically, the rule is applicable to Governor Brown, as well as the lowliest citizen," the judges wrote.

They added that Brown's assertion that prison crowding was no longer inhibiting the delivery of effective health services to inmates, would "not constitute an excuse for his failure to comply with the orders of this Court."

California has been under court orders to reduce population in the 33-prison system since 2009, when the same judicial panel ordered it to relieve the overcrowding that has caused inadequate medical and mental health care.

In January, Brown asked the judges to vacate their order to further lower the prison population, saying that California had fixed its overcrowding problem and further releases of prisoners would harm public safety.

The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation reported 119,213 inmates on January 2, just under 150 percent of capacity but above a 137.5 percent target.

THREAT OF CONTEMPT

The three jurists - Stephen Reinhardt, Lawrence K. Karlton and Thelton E. Henderson - reaffirmed an earlier ruling giving the state a six-month extension on its deadline for easing crowding to December 31, 2013.

But they said they expected their ruling to be respected: "If defendants do not take all steps necessary to comply...they will without further delay be subject to findings of contempt."

The issue has become a political football for Brown, partly because reducing the population in state prisons has meant that local jurisdictions have had to host some convicts in county jails who previously would have been sent to state prisons.

In addition, numerous parolees convicted of non-violent offenses are now being supervised at the local level.

Lawyers for inmates who had sued the state over poor medical care resulting from the crowded conditions welcomed the ruling, saying the state had been dragging its feet in developing a plan to ease conditions.

"Care is still lousy and crowding is still the primary reason," said Ernest Galvan, an attorney in the case.

Deborah Hoffman, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said the state had spent more than $1 billion reducing overcrowding and improving medical care in its prisons.

"Since 2006, the inmate population in the state's 33 prisons has been reduced by more than 43,000," Hoffman told Reuters in an email. "Any further reduction of the prison population is unnecessary and unsafe."

The court's order grows out of two cases filed against the state, one in 1990 and the other in 2001. In one, lawyers for inmates argued that medical care in California prisons was so poor that it was unconstitutional. In the other, attorneys contended that mental health care was similarly under par.

Several courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, have agreed, finding overcrowding to be the root of the problem.

http://news.yahoo.com/brown-must-red...202606088.html

April 12, 2013

Jerry Brown defiant of contempt of court threat in prison case

Gov. Jerry Brown said Friday his administration will not comply with a federal court order rejecting his effort to avoid reducing California's prison population, pledging to litigate "until the Supreme Court tells us that we're not on the right track."

The Democratic governor, in China for a week-long trade mission, said he was unaware that a three-judge federal court on Thursday had threatened to hold him and top prison officials in contempt of court, though he appeared unfazed by the prospect.

"I'm sure the people in L.A. would like to see more prisoners out on the streets," Brown said. "See, we have two problems here: Some are saying there are too many people being let loose, and then we have the judges saying, not enough, we need another 10,000 out there. So somewhere we're going to find the golden mean, and I will do my best to make it work."


The dispute follows a U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton decision in April denying Brown's bid to get prison health care out from under federal control.

A special panel consisting of Karlton and two other judges ordered the state in 2009 to reduce its prison population to improve health care in the prison system.

Brown has refused to decrease the prison population by the required 9,000 inmates to reach the court-ordered level.

"Look, California prisons are run by honorable men and women," Brown said. "They're doing the best job possible. We have, I believe from what I'm being advised, among the best healthcare in America and probably in the world. Now the judge sees it differently, and all I can say is I respect his differences, but we will take our case to the higher courts."

Brown said he plans to personally inspect the prisons at issue.

"I'm personally going to be taking my own personal inspection tour of those prisons which the judge feels are not up to snuff, and I will certainly listen and read what the critics say," Brown said. "But I have to tell you the constitutional standard is deliberate indifference, and as far as I know there is no one deliberately indifferent to the health needs of California prisoners, and if I find such a person, he will be fired on the spot."

http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalert...#storylink=cpy