Sheriff Toughens the Rules on Early Release of Inmates

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced Tuesday that it is toughening rules on the early release of inmates from its overcrowded jails, hoping to keep those with histories of violent crimes behind bars longer.

The new scrutiny marks a shift in policy by Sheriff Lee Baca, who earlier this month said he didn’t have the resources to research inmates’ past offenses and questioned whether it was fair to consider the previous actions when deciding when they would be released.

Under a plan that sheriff’s officials outlined to county supervisors Tuesday, deputies would research the criminal histories of inmates when they are considered for early release. Those with convictions for violent or serious crimes would be held back from early release, even if the crimes that resulted in their most recent jail stints did not involve violence.

Officials estimated that the new rules could mean that an additional 1,500 inmates a year will serve their full sentences. They said the jail system could absorb the added inmate load, in part because of new funding that will allow the department to open bed space in the county jails.

The Times reported two weeks ago that, in the last four years, the Sheriff’s Department had released more than 150,000 inmates before their sentences were completed. Sheriff’s officials said the early releases were necessary because the county didn’t have the money to operate enough jails to house them for their full terms.

The Times found that more than 4,400 inmates released early since mid-2002 had been prosecuted for serious assaults but were let go anyway after serving fractions of their sentences.

Many inmates released early went on to commit serious new offenses on days when they would otherwise have been in jail, including 518 robberies, 1,443 assaults and 16 murders.

Baca’s latest move was met with support even from some who have previously criticized the way the jail system is run.

“The sheriff has moved in the right direction. Although the decision to not release these inmates will add an increased burden to already overcrowded jails, it is the wiser course,” said Merrick Bobb, who monitors the Sheriff’s Department for the Board of Supervisors. “Everybody will sleep better knowing that repeat violent offenders will stay behind bars for the full length of their sentences.”

Baca said in an interview Tuesday that he decided to begin the background checks because he believes the department must do everything it can to keep violent offenders in jail as long as possible.

He has defended the early release program as a “last resort” necessitated by a series of devastating budget cuts that began in 2002 and forced him to close jails and stop hiring deputies.

Today, the department has about 19,000 jail beds available but needs about 30,000 to end the early release program, he said.

In 2003 the department briefly looked into inmates’ past crimes as criteria for release, but it gave up the effort because it became too time-consuming, Baca said.

In an interview earlier this month, the sheriff said he did not have the resources for such research. He also questioned whether it was fair to consider previous crimes for which inmates had already been punished when deciding whether they should be released early.

“You can’t go that deep. You have to realize that they’re in for a particular charge,” he said. “And it’s the charge that they’re being accused of that your ultimate basis of judgment will come from. If not, what you’re using is other crimes that they’ve already been punished for as a reason for keeping them in.”

Asked to explain his change of position, Baca said he is simply trying to do the best he can in a difficult situation. He acknowledged that the department may have a hard time screening the thousands of inmates per year it considers for early release.

Sheriff’s officials said Tuesday they believe they can hold the violent inmates longer without being forced to let other inmates out of the jails even earlier.

“It’s another level of safety for the public,” said sheriff’s Chief Marc Klugman, who oversees the jail system. “The past history tells you something about their propensity to commit dangerous crimes.”

Had the new policy been in place in 2004, jailers would not have released Mario Moreno after he served 53 days of a one-year sentence for possessing a sawed-off shotgun, Klugman said. Moreno had a conviction for robbery as a juvenile and would now be kept in jail for his full sentence.

Eleven days after his release, Moreno was riding in a stolen car with two fellow gang members when he shot and killed a homeless man outside a liquor store in South Los Angeles. He was later convicted of manslaughter.

Baca said the department is in a difficult position because the courts continue to send violent felons to the county jails under plea bargains, even though he lacks the resources to hold them. Prosecutors should demand trials in more serious cases and seek sentences to state prison instead of jail, he said.

“This is not the sheriff’s job to make these decisions. It’s literally the courts’ job. Plea-bargaining them into the County Jail is not the right way to achieve justice,” Baca said. “The courts should not be sentencing state-prison potential inmates to the County Jail.”

Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley said he’s troubled that the Sheriff’s Department is playing such a key role in determining the sentences that inmates serve in the county jails.

“The whole thing bothers me,” he said. “At some point they have to respect the sentence imposed by the court and not undo it…. I have concerns about the constitutionality of these sub-sentencing systems where the court loses its jurisdiction.

“Essentially the jailers become the judge,” he said.

The county is considering placing a bond measure of up to $500 million on the November ballot that could be used to expand and improve its jail system.

The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to require the Sheriff’s Department to prepare reports about what it is doing to screen inmates for past violent crimes and about whether the additional funding will allow the department to keep inmates in jail longer.

Bobb said it’s unfortunate that the policy changes came after so many violent crimes were committed by inmates released early.

“This progressive step is cold comfort to the friends and relatives of those killed,” he said.

*