Go buy some Ammo

Local officials are bracing for a radical realignment of the state penal system that will place thousands of low-level felons in county jail rather than prison.
Depending on whom is doing the analysis, the change, set to take place Saturday, could either result in a huge crime spike or a noticeable drop in recidivism rates.

Concerned about the plan and its potential impact on public safety, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will meet with Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday in Los Angeles, Supervisor Michael Antonovich said.

"We had a phone conference call with the governor and were shocked at his lack of understanding of the consequences of dumping state felons on the doorstep of every county in this state," Antonovich said.

"Many of these people are mentally ill - severely mentally ill - and the board's position was that we will not accept any of the severely mentally ill," he said. "If we are forced to do that, we will sue the state. That's what led to this meeting with the governor."

The realignment came about as the result of AB 109, a bill signed by Brown in April that promised to "stop the costly, ineffective and unsafe `revolving door' of lower-level offenders and parole violators through our state prisons."

In different ways county court officials, prosecutors and cops are preparing to deal with the fallout.

Rising crime

Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley - for one - warns the
plan will result in a "public safety nightmare."

"We are going to go from the lowest crime rate in 60 years to the biggest spike in crime in our lifetime," Cooley said. "On top of that it's going to force more case settlements and the quality of prosecutions will decline."



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