Sheriff John McGinness says he expects up to 80 more inmates to be let go in the next few days. That’s on top of around 200 released before a judge temporarily stopped the practice last week. Still, the sheriff expects the county’s inmate population will soon level off.
McGinness: “The volume of inmates coming into the institutions isn’t gonna change. The only thing that’s gonna change is the amount of time they spend there. So my sense is that we will see some level of stability.”
Last year’s state budget deal included a provision that requires low-level offenders who have earned enough good behavior credits to be released sooner than before.
On Tuesday, the judge overturned his original order to stop the early releases. So McGinness says he’s following Attorney General Jerry Brown’s advice and only applying the new law going forward – not retroactively.
State lawmakers are working on legislation to clarify last year’s measure. And several groups are challenging the early releases throughout the state – including one that’s scheduled for a Sacramento County courtroom Friday morning.