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The plan for realignment of the California prison system is already showing some negative effects on the county jails throughout the state. The legislation, known as AB109, sends more sentenced inmates into county lockup to serve their sentences rather than state prisons.

This plan is intended to alleviate the overcrowding that the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in 2011. The result of this move is being felt by the county jails, many of which are struggling to maintain the population cap and provide rehabilitation programs that are structured to stop the “revolving door” for low-level offenders inside the criminal justice system.

Monterey …

In the wake of California’s Realignment Plan, county jails are faced with the dilemma of keeping down the growing inmate population. As more sentenced prisoners are sent to local detention facilities, counties need to decide what to do with pretrial inmates in order to free up space in the jails.

The governor’s realignment plan requires non-violent, non-sexual and non-serious offenders that are sentenced after October 2011 to serve their sentences in a local detention center instead of a state facility.

This is forcing jail deputies to make the decision of which inmates are the best choice to be released early. Over …

The Santa Rita Jail has been described as many things.  In recent months it was acknowledged as being the "Greenest Jail in the U.S."    It's also been described a convenient location to house inmates who will need to appear at the Dublin Courthouse.

What is not being described as, however, is a favorable place to be detained.

According to a recent report by Curbed.com, the Santa Rita Jail has ranked just 2.5 stars among Alameda County Yelpers.

One person arrested during an Occupy Oakland sweep complained of "freezing and squalid" drunk tanks, furthering the toilets are "hepatitis-y" and the cells lack soap.  …

California county jails have been struggling with severe overcrowding and budget strains ever since the implementation of the Public Safety Realignment. This new plan has begun sending low-level offenders into the local jail system as opposed to the state prison system.

This is leading to an increase in the number of inmates being housed throughout California county jails. Counties are looking into other, more costly solutions to help alleviate conditions.

One is to release more pretrial inmates on their “own recognizance” or to monitor them remotely with GPS systems. Both have their own expenses that are only bringing more strain to …

CRIMINAL ARREST: WHAT NOW?
When someone is arrested and charged with a crime there are several things that will take place before they need to worry about a possible conviction and/or having a criminal record.
BEING ARRESTED
If a member of law enforcement believes you may have committed a crime and they have “probable cause” that you have done so, they will have the grounds to search your vehicle, your person, and even arrest you on suspicion of committing that crime.  If you are arrested you will be taken to a local police or Sheriff's station to be booked and processed.
BAILING OUT …

The Los Angeles County Sheriff has finally agreed to shut down the old section of the county’s notorious Men’s Central Jail. The old section of the jail has long been at the center of some of the most violent clashes between inmates and deputies

The LA Sheriff’s Department has been under investigation by the FBI, looking into allegations of brutality inside the jails. The Sheriff denies that these investigations made him change his mind about closing off part of Men’s Central Jail. Prior to this, he refused to shut down the facility without construction of a new jail.

The Sheriff says …

In 2008, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department began taken precautionary measures for budgetary issues by creating the position of Correctional Services Assistants (CSA). CSAs are civilian employees who are hired to fill positions at county jails that are traditionally held by sworn sheriff’s deputies.

The CSAs earn a lower hourly rate than new deputies and are also given fewer retirement benefits. Of the approximately 730 positions within the county jails, 80% are filled with deputies. There are 140 civilian employees working in the Orange County corrections system at present. It is the intention of county officials to increase the number …

The Santa Rita Jail in Alameda County uses $3 million in electricity every year, about the amount needed to power a small town. To help meet those vast needs for power, the jail has taken steps towards going green with the use of its own electrical grid, which combines wind, solar and fuel cell power.

The energy produced is stored and used in its own special power grid and prevents blackouts. The Santa Rita Jail began using this unique system in January.

The power grid was developed by Chevron Energy Solutions, working with the detention center for more than ten years. …

California Governor Jerry Brown’s realignment plan has led to the overcrowding of many county jails. These jails were much in need of expansion and improvement even before the decision was made to send low-level offenders there to serve their time instead of the more severely overcrowded state prison system.

As part of legislation, the state decided to allocate $602 million to county jail improvements and construction. Twenty counties applied for the funds and 11 were selected to receive a portion of the sum.
How was the funding divided?
Los Angeles County jails, Riverside jail  and Orange County jails each received $100 million. …

It has been fifteen years since the nation watched the news of a bank robbery in North Hollywood that turned into a 44-minute shooting spree between the heavily-armed robbers and law enforcement officers.

On February 28, 1997, Larry Phillips, 31, and Emil Matasareanu, 27, carried out a plan to rob the Bank of America in North Hollywood. That day, the bank would have had over $750,000 at hand in order to be ready for payday. This would have been the biggest robbery for the duo, who allegedly committed several other bank heists in the area.

Around 9:30 that Friday morning, the …