Prison reform bill supporters harsh on mayor

A group of about 20 activists gathered outside city hall on Wednesday (July 20) to voice their support for Proposition 57, a measure advocated by governor Jerry Brown and denounced by mayor Kevin Faulconer.

The Parole, Early Release and Juvenile Trial Reform Initiative has two primary components. The first would allow judges, rather than prosecutors, to decide whether juveniles should be tried in adult courts.The second seeks to allow offenders convicted on non-violent offenses to apply for parole upon completion of their primary sentences and earn good-behavior sentence reductions for completing educational or rehabilitation programs while incarcerated.

Controversy surrounding the measure already exists, as a lawsuit sought to prevent proponents from even gathering signatures to place it on the ballot. Opponents of the measure argued that the proposition, which would amend California's constitution, was excessively altered after it was first submitted to the attorney general for review. The measure originally only contained the provision related to trying juveniles in adult courts.

"If an individual is documented for selling drugs, but he's also been documented as a gang member, instead of a five-year sentence for the drugs, he might get an additional three- to ten-year enhancement for the gang affiliation," said bishop Cornelius Bowser, explaining that other so-called enhancements often add up to a considerably longer prison stay than the initial sentence. He and others believe that the measure would be beneficial through its emphasis on rehabilitation programs and increased incentive for inmates to participate in them.

The group, composed of local faith leaders and prison-rights activists, complained that Faulconer had refused to meet with the community before embarking on an anti-57 campaign last week.

"We invited him to talk to us. He had the opportunity to come into our community and explain his opposition to the measure, but he canceled. To me that's disrespectful," said Dwayne Harvey. "And he's actually putting out non-truths about the proposition, saying it's going to allow violent criminals to be released. But if you read the proposition, it's only talking about non-violent offenders and it's not even talking about release, just an opportunity to go before the parole board.

"Don't listen to the propaganda, read the proposition for yourself. The language is simple — if you read it you'll understand it."

The full text of Proposition 57 is available here.