Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/45652
6A Daily News – Wednesday, October 26, 2011 Opinion Governor's early release plan — an injustice for California D NEWSAILY RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Greg Stevens, Publisher gstevens@redbluffdailynews.com Chip Thompson, Editor editor@redbluffdailynews.com Editorial policy The Daily News opinion is expressed in the editorial. The opinions expressed in columns, letters and cartoons are those of the authors and artists. Letter policy The Daily News welcomes let- ters from its readers on timely topics of public interest. All let- ters must be signed and pro- vide the writer's home street address and home phone num- ber. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and cannot exceed two double-spaced pages or 500 words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section of those submit- ted will be considered for publi- cation. Letters will be edited. Letters are published at the discretion of the editor. Mission Statement We believe that a strong com- munity newspaper is essential to a strong community, creating citizens who are better informed and more involved. The Daily News will be the indispensible guide to life and living in Tehama County. We will be the premier provider of local news, information and advertising through our daily newspaper, online edition and other print and Internet vehi- cles. The Daily News will reflect and support the unique identities of Tehama County and its cities; record the history of its com- munities and their people and make a positive difference in the quality of life for the resi- dents and businesses of Tehama County. How to reach us Main office: 527-2151 Classified: 527-2151 Circulation: 527-2151 News tips: 527-2153 Sports: 527-2153 Obituaries: 527-2151 Photo: 527-2153 On the Web www.redbluffdailynews.com Fax Newsroom: 527-9251 Classified: 527-5774 Retail Adv.: 527-5774 Legal Adv.: 527-5774 Business Office: 527-3719 Address 545 Diamond Ave. Red Bluff, CA 96080, or P.O. Box 220 Red Bluff, CA 96080 As the head of the state parole board for many years, I've had the chance to witness thousands of dangerous indi- viduals whose crimes have left scars on the lives of many innocent people. Many of them have been provided opportunities to change their ways through various rehabil- itation programs. Believe me, nothing would please me more than to report to you that most have had a change of heart and have turned away from their criminal ways. In reality, however, very few make the decision to stop their criminal behavior and continue to represent a seri- ous threat to society. I believe it is my responsi- bility as an elected official to ensure the safety of innocent, law-abiding Californians by incarcerating these dangerous individuals whose criminal record has shown a pervasive, persistent pattern of victim- ization. To prevent is almost always a better path than to repair. Over the years, I wish that those in power at the Cal- ifornia Department of Cor- rections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) would have truly established meaningful, sus- tained rehabilitation in cus- tody and in the community. I quickly learned that, for CDCR leadership, rehabilita- tion was more in word than deed. I have long suggested changes and increased accountability to rehabilita- tion programs. During the first year of the Schwarzenegger administra- tion, I even recommended adding the word rehabilita- tion to the Department's title in hope of increasing their resolve. For the past decade, inmate lawsuits have been the biggest cost driver in the Department's rising costs. Two years ago I achieved the creation of a Litigation and Prevention Unit in CDCR to get control of this vast expense. The Administration sug- gests that the early release and shift of inmates and parolees to local government was caused by the courts. This is not the case. In reali- ty, the courts simply ordered the state to come up with a plan to deal with overcrowd- ing to improve inmate health care. I and others, have offered many alternatives including the authorization five years ago of funds for more prison and local jail space in Assembly Bill 900. I also suggested applying the concepts of HMO medicine in the prison system. These efforts were opposed by CDCR. The Assembly Public Safety Committee then defeated my bill to do this, but that same day the Federal prison receiver embraced the idea and implemented the first steps under his own authority. So what constitutes this optional shift? Governor Brown has decided to discon- tinue the practice begun under Governor Schwarzenegger of contract- ing with other states that have the extra space to house some of our inmates. As a result, prison beds designed to house an average inmate popu- lation of 11,700, according to his own Department of Finance, will be dis- continued. In addition, the state will end the con- tracts that we have with some counties to house inmates. This means beds for an average inmate popu- lation of 5,245 will be eliminated. Keep in mind that the prison- ers held in out-of-state pris- ons and local counties through these contracts do not count towards the federal prison population cap. How- ever, eliminating these arrangements now means that there will be more pressure on our correctional system. While realignment's sup- porters would like you to believe that only petty thieves will be affected, the simple fact is that criminals with more serious records will instead be sent to overcrowd- ed county jails. Many crimi- nals will only serve a fraction of their sentences, while oth- ers will be granted early release to make room for the influx of state felons into our communities. In essence, the governor's realignment scheme is really about lowering the sentences Assemblyman Jim Nielsen of thousands of criminals through the backdoor. For years, liberal Democrats have pushed for a sen- tencing commission that would allow a group of unelected individuals to weaken mandatory sentencing laws that are keeping Californians safe. Only strong public opposition has pre- vented them from doing so. With realignment, the liberals will have achieved their objective at the expense of justice and public safety. As the problems with realignment unfold, many claim the solution is more money through higher taxes. This plan was touted as a cost savings! The problem is not money. The plan is funda- mentally flawed and no amount of new tax money can ensure justice and safety. The governor and the Leg- islature should reconvene, repeal AB 109 and start all over with a responsible, con- sensus solution that is the result of true bipartisan nego- tiations. Assemblyman Nielsen represents the Second Assembly District, which includes: Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Modoc, Shasta, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama and Yolo counties. Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Jim Nielsen (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 6031 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 319-2002; Fax (916) 319-2102 STATE SENATOR — Doug LaMalfa (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 3070 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 651-4004; Fax (916) 445-7750 GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 558-3160; E-mail: gover- nor@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Wally Herger (R), 2635 Forest Ave. Ste. 100, Chico, CA 95928; 893-8363. U.S.SENATORS — Dianne Feinstein (D), One Post Street, Suite 2450, San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 393-0707. Fax (415) 393-0710. Barbara Boxer (D), 1700 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (510) 286-8537. Fax (202) 224- 0454. The way Halloween should be Commentary Not until it got dark! That was the trick-or-treating rule my mother set down every year. She didn't want me to embar- rass her by interrupting families still having dinner. I hated the rule. Tommy Gillen and I had big plans to hit as many houses as possible before we had to come home. It was the 1970s, after all. Schools weren't yet banning Hal- loween activities. There was no kid obesity epidemic. There weren't many modern sensitivities at all. And so I dressed as a hobo, a Depression-era fellow, with dirt on my face, carrying a bundle tied to a stick over my shoulder. That would surely be considered insen- sitive today. We didn't care about our cos- tumes much anyhow. All we cared about was the candy, regular kids' gold — especially because candy and junk food were hardly ever permitted in our homes the rest of the year. Thus, our Halloween mission was to pack as much of it into a pil- lowcase as we could. Despite urban legends about candy laced with poison or nee- dles, parents allowed their 10-year- old kids to roam the streets unmonitored, banging on front doors miles from home. Tommy and I refined our plan every year. We'd start with the bigger hous- es on the other side of the tunnel, where the "rich" people handed out a panoply of full-size treats: Hershey's, Nestle Crunch, Milk Duds, Good & Plenty, Almond Joy, $100,000 Bar, Twizzlers, Snickers, Milky Way, Kit Kat, M&Ms, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and the granddaddy of them all, Mallow Cup. We knew which houses to hit and which to avoid. There was always some lady who handed out popcorn balls or Rice Krispies marshmallow bars. Hey, lady, we'd think, our moth- ers can make those at home! Go to the store and get some real candy next year! After miles of walking, we'd hit the small ranch houses in the adjoining borough. The people there were nice but, boy, did they grate on a kid's nerves. Many handed out nickel candy — one-fifth the size of a regular bar. We had to hit five houses to equal one lousy bar. Or, worse, they handed out crunchy peanut-butter Clark Bars, which were made locally and were, therefore, cheap. The only thing I hated more than a Clark Bar was a Zag- nut, which was, I'm pretty sure, a Clark Bar covered with toe- nail clippings. Tommy and I kept knocking on doors well beyond our 8:30 p.m. deadline. We never arrived home until after 10 p.m., our feet raw. Our mother would lecture us for embarrassing her by knocking on people's doors so late, while our dad would "check" for wrappers that appeared to be tampered with to "make sure there were no nee- dles in there." We all know how that turned out. Then we locked ourselves in our bedrooms to take inventory. What a thrill to dump a full pillow- case of candy onto the carpet, organize it by category and bask in our newfound wealth. Of course, we'd soon be over- come by the fear that our siblings would find where we hid it—- so we spit on it! Alas, that's how Hal- loween was for kids in the '70s. What it was really about was allowing kids to col- laborate, plan and execute without adult interference. We learned to navigate Tom Purcell way. Tom Purcell, a freelance writer is also a humor columnist for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate. Email Tom at Purcell@caglecartoons.com. dark alleys and busy roads; avoid mean dogs and cranky neighbors; and out- wit older kids who prowled the streets, taking candy from younger kids. Sure, people gave us free treats, but it took cunning, self-reliance and risk for a kid to make it home with a full pillow- case. If only Halloween were still this