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| County Officials Join Forces to Establish San Diego’s First ‘Reentry Court’ |
| By San Diego County District Attornery |
| Published: 10/13/2010 |
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San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie M. Dumanis joined with San Diego County Supervisors Greg Cox and Ron Roberts, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Secretary Matthew Cate, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore, San Diego County Chief of Probation Mack Jenkins, San Diego County Public Defender Henry Coker, the San Diego County Superior Court, Health and Human Services Director Nick Macchione, and San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne to announce the approval of a $1.5 million state grant that will fund the county’s first Reentry Court. “We continue to work together in San Diego County to stop the revolving door to prison,” said DA Dumanis. “This new Reentry Court is the latest step in reducing prison overcrowding, holding offenders accountable and addressing the threat to public safety from parolees who continue to violate the law The $1.5 million grant was made by the California Emergency Management Agency and approved today by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. “In recent years, San Diego County has been a leader in prison reentry programming and Reentry Court continues that vision,” said Supervisor Roberts. “This is an important step toward ensuring public safety at a time when the state continues to shift the responsibility for supervising parolees back to the local level.” Each year, about 8,000 prison inmates are released and returned to San Diego County. Because of changes in the law and early release of prisoners, the number of parolees returning to San Diego County is increasing. At the same time, prison substance abuse treatment and job training programs have been cut. About 70% of parolees who return to our community re-offend within three years and return to prison, the majority with substance abuse and mental health issues. Thus far, San Diego County’s Prison Reentry Program, known as SB618, early indications show a reduction in that recidivism to about 20%. Reentry Court will only be available to some defendants who have committed non-violent, non-sexual crimes while on parole, or who violated the terms of their parole. Participants must plead guilty and are held accountable, but are also diverted away from costly incarceration and into programs that will give them the tools to become clean, sober and productive citizens. Participants are rigorously monitored by the court and law enforcement. “The taxpayer has been footing the bill to keep the revolving door to prison open,” said Supervisor Cox. “Reentry Court begins to close that door and saves San Diego County money in the long run.” The yearly cost to house an inmate in local custody (county jail) is about $ 35,000 per year. Reentry Court lowers that cost to between $5,000 and $15,000 annually per defendant. Reentry Court is scheduled to begin in November and will be presided over by San Diego Superior Court Judge Desiree Bruce-Lyle, who has previously presided in Drug Court. The Cal EMA grant will allow about 250 non-violent parolees to be diverted to Reentry Court over a two-year period. The bulk of the funding will go to the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency for substance abuse and mental health treatment. |
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