Such a policy is not only dangerous to public safety, but would “confer on criminal aliens benefits that are not available to inmates who are citizens of the United States,” according to the CDAA.
In a letter delivered Monday to the governor and lawmakers, CDAA cautioned against the deportation plan. “We believe that all inmates, regardless of their immigration status, should be held to the same level of accountability for their conduct,” stated the letter. “If you were to exercise your constitutional power to commute the sentences of any portion of the inmate population, we urge you to do so only after there has been an assessment of the risk of each individual for re-offending.”
In a letter delivered Monday to the governor and lawmakers, CDAA cautioned against the deportation plan. “We believe that all inmates, regardless of their immigration status, should be held to the same level of accountability for their conduct,” stated the letter. “If you were to exercise your constitutional power to commute the sentences of any portion of the inmate population, we urge you to do so only after there has been an assessment of the risk of each individual for re-offending.”
CDAA also took issue with the administration’s proposal to reduce so-called “wobbler” offenses, i.e., crimes that can be charged as either felonies or misdemeanors, to straight misdemeanors, citing a host of unintended consequences that would “subvert prosecutorial efforts in numerous ways.”
The letter noted that crimes such as grand theft, vehicle theft, identity theft and other fraud offenses rob Californians of millions of dollars each year. Eliminating the ability of prosecutors to charge such “wobbler” offenses as felonies would jeopardize public safety by “blurring the lines between degrees of criminality such that participants in complicated, high-dollar theft rings would be subject to the same punishment as petty thieves.”
“Felony crimes carry longer statutes of limitations than misdemeanors. This means that prosecutions of major fraud cases, for example, which are often document driven and take months, if not years, to come together, could be lost,” the letter stated. “Under existing law, search warrants generally can only be issued in cases involving felonies. This proposal would effectively abolish the use of this vital law enforcement tool.”The letter noted that crimes such as grand theft, vehicle theft, identity theft and other fraud offenses rob Californians of millions of dollars each year. Eliminating the ability of prosecutors to charge such “wobbler” offenses as felonies would jeopardize public safety by “blurring the lines between degrees of criminality such that participants in complicated, high-dollar theft rings would be subject to the same punishment as petty thieves.”
While the letter from the prosecutors’ association acknowledges the historic magnitude of California’s economic crisis, it expressed concern that the justice system could be “irrevocably harmed” by some of the proposed cuts in criminal justice.
In a prepared statement, Lieberstein said, “We cannot allow public safety to be compromised by rushing to put a price tag on justice in order to cut state costs. There are alternatives available to the governor and legislative leaders that do not sacrifice our obligation to protect the safety of all Californians including the citizens of our county.”
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