Regulating California’s Prison Population

Abstract

While many scholars and social commentators bemoan the rise of “mass incarceration” in the United States, few states have succeeded in significantly reducing prison populations. Fueled by systemic changes in penal codes, sentencing practices, and federal funding all designed to increase the use of imprisonment, most states have been unable to reverse the massive increase that has transpired over the past four decades. More alarming, there are few indications that mass incarceration will be reduced any time soon. There are a few exceptions, with California being one. Since 2007, California’s prison population has dropped by over 43,000 prisoners. Reductions have also been achieved in the state parole (82,000) and probation (15,000) populations. Today there are 146,000 fewer Californians in prison, jail, parole, or probation. Initially driven largely by a period of lengthy litigation, a rare federal court order to depopulate, several other reforms, reflecting a sticks and carrots approach, were introduced beginning in 2007 to lower imprisonment rates. Among them was “Realignment,” which relocated approximately 27,000 state prisoners to the counties. However, it required another stick in the form of a ballot initiative (Proposition 47) to further reduce the prison population and meet compliance with the federal court order. In the end, it was the externally imposed dual “sticks” of litigation and a ballot initiative that proved to be the driving forces in reducing California’s use of mass incarceration.