In a time where California hangs in a budget crisis, unemployment lingers at 12.2 percent and educational costs rocket through the roof, a three-judge panel has ordered the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to reduce their prison population by 137.5 percent over the next two years.

On August 4, 2009 the federal government concluded that the state of California had continuously failed to implement measures to decrease prison population after postponing recommendations for years.

Currently, the inmate population of California's 33 prisons is 150,354 and exceeds far beyond the bed capacity. The bed capacity design used by the courts show a housing capacity of 79,828. With a court ruled population cap of 137.5 percent there will be a reduction of 40,951 inmates in the next two years.

The calculations for release will be done within the next four months for non-revocable parole, according to Fred Bridgewater, the Region II assistant public information officer for the California Division of Adult Parole Operations.

If the non-violent offender commits a crime, law enforcement would have to file new charges through the court system where the judge will be allowed to determine how much jail time the offender does.

"There's the philosophy that non-violent people don't have to be locked up anyway," said Kenneth Michael Walsh, crime expert and associate director of criminal justice at SF State. "It sounds easy, but these guys have a life of crime."

Although the non-violent offenders will not be going back to prison on parole violations, they have possibilities of going back for new crimes.

"A small number of people commit the vast number of crimes," Walsh said. But, he doesn't believe the release of the non-violent offenders will have an effect. "It takes a lot of activity to increase crime rate."

On January 21, 2009, Senate Bill 18XXX was signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to help decrease prison population and recidivism by primarily focusing on parole reform and earned credits.

The senate bill will place non-violent offenders on non-revocable parole, or NRP, which allows them to go back to their community unsupervised. They are no longer subject to appear before a parole board or to take drug tests, but are still subject to searchable conditions with or without a warrant.

According to Bridgewater, the reform will help parole officers focus primarily on the high-level offenders rather than those who come back to prison based on technicalities. With the introduction of this bill, a parole officer's caseload is expected to drop from 70 to 48 cases.

Gordon Hinkle, press secretary for the CDCR feels this is a much-needed reform on the parole side. It will allow the parole officers to put their "social worker" hat on and to refer the parolees to various agencies and services available in the community.

With Senate Bill 18XXX, if inmates have completed a certain number of credits within the prison, and have been on good behavior, it will be very likely that their parole dates may move up as result of the credit calculation. Some of these inmates may qualify for non-revocable parole and some will be placed on parole and monitored by the parole board.

"It's up to inmates to take advantage of credit enhancements and individuals on non- revocable parole to not commit new crimes," Hinkle said. "We feel that it's definitely going to bear fruit and will help reduce prison population."

Problems with prison crowding have been an issue for the past three decades, according to Dan Macallair, expert on incarceration and lecturer on Criminal Justice policy at SF State. But, California is appealing the judges ruling on federal oversight over firm belief that the state is most equipped to handle the situation.

"The state has never been able to address the prison crisis," said Macallair.

According to Macallair, courts should get involved because overflowing prisons have resulted in human rights violations and unnecessary pain and suffering for people who depend on state funding.

"The political system can't deal with it, of course the courts have to get involved," Macallair said. "Releasing inmates is not the answer to solve the budget crisis. But it is part of the answer."

Macallair believes the bill is long overdue.

"We've taken wheelchairs away from disabled people so we can maintain a bloated prison system," he said. "It's obscene."

Regarding unemployment concerns, Hinkle and Macallair both agree that the population of inmates being released is not big enough to have an effect on the percentage of unemployment.