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EDITORIAL: Newsom's prison plan unlocks useful ideas

Orange County Register - 8/18/2021

Aug. 18—California has an odd knack for throwing money at its most difficult problems without spending the time and energy to reform the way its bureaucracies currently operate. We often complain that the state government is resistant to reform, on issues ranging from transportation spending to its unemployment system to the public schools.

For that reason alone, we're pleased that Gov. Gavin Newsom is adopting a novel approach toward one of its largest and most challenging agencies, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). It's about time the agency, with an annual budget of $13.6 billion, try some innovative approaches.

This governor has a habit of declaring dramatic actions that don't live up to the hype, but his proposed corrections reforms could potentially live up to the billing. As the Sacramento Bee reported in an extensive review of the plan, the Newsom administration is spending $13 million to improve prison amenities, plus an additional $3 million a year.

That's a rounding error in the state's $263-billion budget, but the ideas behind the new spending are innovative and thoughtful. Starting with Valley State Prison in Chowchilla, the state is experimenting with the Norwegian model of incarceration — one that strives to make prisons more humane by focusing on rehabilitation rather than punishment.

The ideas seem sensible and by no means amount to being soft on crime, despite efforts by critics to portray these reforms that way. The planned improvements include an increase in job training, education and counseling, along with more comfortable furnishings and expanded family visits, according to the Bee report.

Myriad research has shown that creating less-brutal prison environments can reduce recidivism and protect inmates and guards, who have the tough job of patrolling these facilities. California prisoners have the highest suicide rates in the nation — and prison guards also have high suicide rates and often suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), per the report.

The devil is in the details, of course. Lawmakers and the public should consider these efforts to develop a better prison environment separately from the issue of early releases of prisoners — something that the Newsom administration also has embraced. That policy is more controversial, given the potential dangers of releasing violent inmates into our communities.

Liberals aren't the only ones who have advocated European-style prison reforms. Many conservatives recognize that careful criminal-justice reforms can save taxpayers money, protect employees who work in these facilities and improve public safety. Most inmates eventually get out and such innovations can reduce recidivism by better preparing them for life outside of a cell.

California has one of the highest recidivism rates in the country, with 66% of inmates returning to prison within three years. California's prisons and county jails are hotbeds for abuse. A federal court case in March spotlighted the routine abuse of disabled inmates.

In 2008, these pages compared the situation in a privately run jail, which had adopted a variety of humane incarceration concepts, with those in a nearby traditional jail. Not surprisingly, the jail with the more relaxed set up had far fewer violent incidents.

It remains to be seen whether these latest reforms will pan out, but it's encouraging that California is willing to try new ideas — and not just new expenditures — to address its serious problems.

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