The prison realignment program in California has helped state prisons reduce their inmate populations, but have increased the number of inmates packed inside local county facilities. The San Diego County jails have seen average daily inmate populations increase from 4,632 in 2011 to 5,073 in 2012, the San Diego Union Tribune reported. Much of the increase has been a result of realignment, which transfers nonviolent criminals from state facilities to county lockups and diverts others to early release and probation.

San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore has created a special unit in the last year that identifies county inmates that could be held under electronic monitoring or GPS supervision to keep jail populations in control, the article stated. Substance abuse and mental health treatments for inmates has also been expanded in San Diego, and the probation has expanded to keep a better watch on prisoners being released into the community.

San Diego Chief Probation Officer Mack Jenkins told the source the county has been following its plan well to adjust to realignment.

However, some disagree. A mother of convicted murderer said probation officers are not doing enough to keep criminals from committing new crimes. Joseph Todd Hall was once classified as a lower-level criminal and was under supervision by San Diego probation officers. After being release from prison, he later pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to 26 years, the Union Tribune reported.

His mother, Carol Tesch, said Hall has been in and out of jail his whole life and cannot function in society. She said probation officers should have kept a closer watch on him, calling to check in on where he was living or visiting his home. These measures could have stopped him from murdering his half-brother, she said.

Hall had previously convictions for drug possession, grand theft and for possessing a firearm as a felon, the article stated. The murder was his first violent crime.

Gang issues also seen after realignment
Gang crime is up in San Diego, and San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne said it is a result of prison realignment. In 2012, the murder rate was up 20 percent in San Diego, ABC 10 News reported. For San Diego County, the rate increased 23 percent compared to 2011.

Lansdowne said the gangs are growing as state prison officials shift tens of thousands of inmates to county jails or releasing them early back into the community.

"We're seeing about a thousand additional people out of prison and they don't have quite the level of oversight they would normally have and it's pretty clear that it's having some effect on the gangs and they're being more aggressive than before," Lansdowne said.