See where California inmates are winning early release because of coronavirus fears

With fears of coronavirus spreading through crowded county jails and the state’s prison systems, officials statewide have released or plan to release thousands of inmates.

Officials say most of the releases involve non-violent, non-serious inmates who are within about two months of their scheduled release days.

These include:

▪ Sacramento County, which released 541 inmates in March who were considered non-serious, non-violent offenders and were close to having finished their sentences.

▪ Los Angeles County, which has released 1,700 inmates and is considering the release of hundreds more from the nation’s largest county jail system.

▪ Fresno County, which has released 207 inmates.

▪ Alameda County, which has released 314 inmates.

▪ San Francisco, which has released 26 inmates.

▪ Orange County, which has released 130 inmates.

Other jails also are considering or have made releases, but the largest immediate release is expected to come from the California prison system, which on Monday announced plans to parole 3,496 non-violent inmates who are within 60 days of their scheduled release date.

Those releases include 1,751 inmates within 30 days of their release date and 1,745 who are within 60 days of their scheduled release. Eligible inmates cannot be serving time for a violent felony, domestic violence or a crime that requires them to register as a sex offender.

The state also says it is reducing its overall population by 3,000 prisoners by halting intake of inmates from county jails for 30 days.

The state prison system has been overcrowded for years and is under federal court orders to keep its inmate population below 137.5 percent of capacity in its 35 prisons.

As of last week, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation says it was housing 114,167 inmates, a number that puts the population at 134.2 percent of capacity.

The final number actually released will depend on a decision by a federal three-judge court that has been asked by attorneys for the inmates to issue an emergency order lowering the 137.5 percent threshold to reduce crowding and protect inmates and staff from COVID-19. A hearing on that request is set for Thursday.

CDCR says four inmates and 25 staffers have tested positive for coronavirus as of Tuesday night.

This story was originally published April 1, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "See where California inmates are winning early release because of coronavirus fears."