Legal/Law/Criminal Justice and Reform

California’s Soft-On-Crime Dream: Close Prison, Parole Serial Pedophile

Dietmar Rabich/Wikimedia Foundation

While California’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office has recommended closing another prison to save the state millions annually, law enforcement officials warn that lawmakers are prioritizing rehabilitation over victims.

Since 2011, California has shifted away from heavy reliance on incarceration, implementing policies geared more toward rehabilitation. In its latest assessment released Monday, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) reviewed several California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) budget proposals and concluded the state could close an additional prison within the next few years.

The “strong candidate” for closure is the Correctional Training Facility in Soledad, which focuses on reducing criminal behavior through “rehabilitation through individualized treatment and education,” according to its site. Closing the facility would potentially save an estimated $150 million annually in operational costs and “avoid the need for infrastructure projects,” according to the LAO.

Notably, the office stated there had been indications that the administration had already begun deactivating portions of prisons, but declined to provide information to the office about the potential changes.

“… we recommend requiring CDCR to report in budget hearings about its deactivation activities and enacting statute requiring legislative notification when the department implements capacity reductions going forward,” the LAO wrote.

The report from the LAO came the same day as the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office held a press conference with other officials and victims regarding the early release of convicted serial child molester David Allen Funston. He was convicted in 1999 on 16 counts of kidnapping and child molestation after he lured children as young as three with candy and toys, kidnapped them and sexually molested them.

Funston was sentenced to more than 20 years in prison, including three consecutive 25-years-to-life terms. However, he was granted parole under the state’s Elderly Parole Program.

The program was first established in 2014 after a three-judge federal panel ordered the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to implement a new parole process for inmates over 60 who had served at least 25 continuous years. The process refers eligible inmates to the Board of Parole Hearings for a suitability review.

In 2018, the Legislature codified the program into state law through Assembly Bill 1448. The program was later expanded through Assembly Bill 3234 in January 2021, lowering eligibility to inmates 50 and older who have served 20 or more continuous years for most offenses.

During a press conference about the early release of Funston, Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper stated that while some inmates might deserve rehabilitation, those convicted of child molestation cannot be rehabilitated for their type of crime.

“What are we coming to as a society here in California that it’s okay with this? To let him out. You think about some of the offenders that do the child abuse cases, child molest cases. Typically, they’re older males. Now we’re seeing a lot of folks in their 20s and 30s,” Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper said.

“So under the law, and we have folks in their 20s that have pending cases right now, they can be up by the time they’re 50, having done 20 years. It doesn’t make any sense whatsoever,” Cooper added.

Under CDCR’s oversight of rehabilitation programs, thousands of inmates have been moved out of California’s prisons and into alternative rehabilitation settings. As a result, the state’s prison population dropped from an estimated 96,000 in mid-2023 to under 91,000 by mid-2024.

Since its implementation 15 years ago, CDCR has been given billions of taxpayer dollars and other funds by the state for its programs and services, receiving $14.3 billion in the fiscal year 2024.

Despite the recommendation from the LAO, a union representing correctional officers opposed the closure of Soledad’s Correctional Training Facility, stating the halt would add fiscal and operational risks to the state, according to The Modesto Bee.

“Prison infrastructure cannot be turned on and off like a light switch. Capacity decisions must reflect crime trends, sentencing changes and long-term correctional planning, not short-term budget considerations,” California Correctional Peace Officers Association President Neil Flood told the outlet.