What Are The Solutions?
I support the use of drug courts, the state drug courts averted 425,014 jail days for a savings of 26.4 million dollars and 227,894 prison days for a saving of $ 16 million dollars. The drug courts also contributed $ 1 million in fines and fees to the state coffers according to a 2002 study by the State Judicial Council and Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. Arrest rates for Drug Court graduates dropped 85% in the 2 years following their admission to a Drug Court Program.
Compare that with the 65% return rate of prisoners released from institutions who return with another felony conviction.
I support 2 year programs such as New Directions at the Veterans Center in Westwood that change the lives of homeless veterans with drug addictions.
The California Department of Corrections has a budget of $ 5.6 billion dollars and has 161,714 prisoners in its facilities at a cost of almost $30,000.00 per inmate.
29% are white: 30% African-American: 36% are Hispanic Many of its population were sentenced on drug related offenses.
The average sentence is 41.4 months The average time served is 26.5 months.
Wouldn't it save the taxpayer's money if more cases were referred to Drug Courts?
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