Governor Signs Bill To Help Ease Jail Crowding
SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a bill that will let counties continue sharing available jail cells as they try to avoid overcrowding or releasing inmates early.
AB1512 by Assemblyman Mark Stone extends for three years an existing law that allows counties to transfer inmates to another county with adequate jail space. The bill Brown announced signing Monday lets counties continue the practice until July 1, 2018.
Stone, a Democrat from Monterey, says the bill will allow Monterey County to continue sending about 60 inmates to Alameda County to ease jail crowding.
He said his bill also gives counties more time to build additional jail cells and otherwise adapt to the state's 3-year-old realignment law, which sends most lower-level criminals to county jails instead of state prisons.
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