Mentally ill parolees

Re “Cuts sought in number of ex-convicts on parole,” April 25

Having served as counsel for parolees in parole revocation hearings for more than 25 years, I see daily that we lock up far too many parolees better suited to educational and training programs.

Nowhere is this felt more keenly than among the mentally ill, who make up roughly a fifth of the 114,000 parole violators who rotate through the system every year. They are blameless, often harmless and more likely to be victims than perpetrators of crimes. They should be under the care of mental health professionals, not jailers.

It took the near-bankruptcy of our state for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to admit to its incarceration addiction. The potential 30,000-parolee reduction, though inadequate, is at least a first step on its long road to recovery.

Brian Hudson

Los Angeles

The writer is executive director of the California Assn. of Parole Defense Attorneys.