California To Begin Doling Out Money Saved From Measure Keeping Fewer People Behind Bars
Nearly 60 public agencies -- including cities and counties, health and human services divisions and probation and law enforcement departments -- have submitted program proposals released last week.
Los Angeles Times:
California Prop. 47 Grants For Criminal Rehabilitation Seen As A Long-Awaited Step Forward
Vonya Quarles grew up in South Los Angeles and describes herself as a third-generation convicted felon. But by the time she took the microphone at a Highland town hall meeting in January 2016, she was a lawyer and executive director of a Riverside County nonprofit that helps connect the homeless, formerly incarcerated and mentally ill to transitional housing. With applause from the audience, she urged state officials not to create “an additional funding stream for the sheriff,” but to pour new funds into community groups, the kind that had helped her kick a drug addiction and get off the streets. That was the fundamental promise of Proposition 47, the sweeping, controversial 2014 ballot measure that downgraded six drug and theft crimes to misdemeanors and allowed defendants to renegotiate their punishments. This spring, the state will begin the process of awarding $103 million in grants, all funded by the ballot initiative’s cost savings from keeping fewer nonviolent offenders in prison. (Ulloa, 3/29)
In other news —
Los Angeles Times:
L.A.'s Chronic Challenge: What To Do With The Mentally Ill Homeless Who Refuse Help?
Under California’s Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, police can take a person into custody for psychiatric treatment if it’s believed that due to a mental disorder, that person is a danger to himself or others, or is determined to be gravely disabled. It’s that last part that offers a little wiggle room, in the minds of the advocates. Grave disability is defined as “a condition in which a person, as a result of a mental disorder, is unable to provide for his or her basic personal needs for food, clothing or shelter.” (Lopez, 3/29)
Valley Public Radio:
In Kern County, Expanded Mental Health Services On Hold Thanks To State Budget Concerns
The Affordable Care Act may be staying in place for now, but the long-term future of health care is still far from certain. And that uncertainty is already taking its toll on some health care programs--with ripple effects felt throughout the Valley. If you peruse the Airbnb listings outside Bakersfield, you may stumble upon Broken Shadow Hermitage—a 3-bedroom getaway in the Tehachapi Mountains. The owner, Rick Hobbs, says it’s a great place to meditate and commune with nature. (Klein, 3/28)
Los Angeles Times:
Recommended Rules Changes For Sober-Living Homes Aim To Prevent Ex-Residents From Becoming Homeless
Operators of group homes and sober-living facilities in Costa Mesa would be required to provide transportation and information on homelessness resources to occupants who are evicted or otherwise involuntarily discharged under a series of proposed rules changes the city Planning Commission recommended Monday night. (Money, 3/28)