Ballot Measure to Help Pay for Jail Construction

Tens of thousands of jail inmates and criminal suspects are being released in Orange County communities each year because of a 1978 federal court order won by the American Civil Liberties Union. Through May, 1989, an average of 4,200 criminals have been released in our neighborhoods each month, and the final figure for this year is expected to surpass 50,000 releases.

Why? In the last 10 years, California voters, and Orange Countians in particular, have demanded tougher sentences for convicted criminals, and the California Legislature has responded with dramatic increases in the length of prison time mandated for certain offenses, such as drunk driving. As a result, the populations of county jails and state prisons have risen dramatically.

Unfortunately, these population increases have not been matched by additional jail construction, and severe overcrowding has resulted. Existing jails have been packed with as many inmates as possible, but federal court orders like the one affecting Orange County are forcing early or pretrial release.

Many of the arrestees being freed prematurely pose serious threats to our families’ safety. Many are drunk drivers, drug pushers or violent felons who have extensive criminal histories and are likely to break the law again--with disastrous results that affect every community in Orange County.

When are we going to say, “This must stop”? When are we going to give law enforcement the tools it needs to protect our families? Without additional jail space, dangerous criminals will continue to be released into our neighborhoods, because there is no room for them in jail.

After years of studying needs assessments and reviews of potential sites for new jails, and after considerable public input, the Orange County Board of Supervisors selected Gypsum Canyon as the site for a new long-term jail and invested more than $7 million in plans and environmental impact studies required by county and state regulatory agencies. While existing revenues are insufficient to permit construction to begin, passage by Orange County voters of a ballot measure funding jail construction with a half-cent addition to the sales tax next year will bring us much closer to our goal of keeping criminals off our streets.

Every day we delay ground breaking for new jails with complaints about jail siting, inmate rights or other issues, 140 criminals who belong in jail will be released into our neighborhoods where they can commit more crimes.

We, the people, have the destiny of Orange County in our hands. We can act now to protect our families and our quality of life, or we can continue to allow criminals to roam free in our neighborhoods.

BRAD GATES

Sheriff, County of Orange