02/11/2014 // West Palm Beach, Florida, US // JusticeNewsFlash // Justice News Flash // (press release)

California – A panel of judges has granted California two more years to reduce its prison population. As reported by The Sacramento Bee, the order issued Monday gives the state until Feb. 28, 2016 to make changes to reduce the number of inmates housed in the state’s 34 prisons.

California prisons are stated to house an estimated 117,600 inmates. In accordance with the order, the number must be lowered to 112,164. The order prohibits the state from sending inmates to prison facilities out of state in order to reduce the number to the required level.

Gov. Jerry Brown is quoted in the report as saying of the panel’s decision in a statement, “It is encouraging that the three-judge court has agreed to a two-year extension…The state now has the time and resources necessary to help inmates become productive members of society and make our communities safer.”

Some expressed disappointment however by the order including Don Specter, director of the Prison Law Office in Berkeley, which has been fighting to improve conditions for inmates. Specter is quoted as stating of the matter, “We’re disappointed that the court didn’t order the state to comply with the Supreme Court’s order more quickly,…The conditions are still overcrowded and it’s still cruel and unusual punishment.”

This report is provided by Justice News Flash – California Legal News

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