Members of law enforcement, social services and the justice system last week called for an integrated regional plan to handle as many as 1,000 state inmates who are expected to make Ventura County their home after they are released from prison earlier than anticipated.

In August, a three-judge federal panel ordered California to prepare a plan by September to reduce its prison population by about 45,000 inmates within two years. The court rejected the Sept. 18 plan submitted by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and gave the department until Nov. 12 to revise it.

“The state . . . continues to work to implement the reforms enacted by the state budget that will reduce overcrowding without compromising public safety,” said Gordon Hinkle, corrections department spokesperson.

Clearly, many county and city leaders aren’t convinced.

On Oct. 22, the Ventura Council of Governments conducted a panel discussion in Camarillo on the possible effects prisoners who’ve been released early could have on the area.

The aim of the council, a joint powers authority representing the county’s 10 cities, is to promote cooperative planning and assistance on issues of shared concern.

Nearly 100 people attended the two-hour meeting.

Undersheriff Mark Ball said he expects 500 to 1,000 state prisoners to come to Ventura County. Because 70 percent of former convicts commit crimes within three years of being released, the county’s three jails could see at least 350 additional inmates, Ball estimated.

County jails are designed to house 1,450 inmates, but are currently overcrowded with 1,650, Ball said. Sixty-seven percent of them have yet to be sentenced.

“We can’t take another 300,” Ball said. “We physically can’t do it; by law, we can’t do it.”

Ball said he’s also concerned that the state will release prisoners without parole supervision.

If that happens, the former inmates may be subjected at any time to a search by law enforcement but cannot be sent back to prison on parole violations. They would have to be brought up on “fresh charges,” requiring them to start over in the judicial system, Ball said, adding that the state wants to make it harder to send the former inmates back to prison.

Karen Staples of the Ventura County Probation Agency said the first 90 days after an inmate is released are the most critical in helping them become productive citizens—and she’s concerned there won’t be adequate community-based services to help the former inmates get on their feet.

The agency may explore alternatives to incarceration—such as increased supervision for those convicted of nonviolent crimes— with other county agencies, she said.

The probation agency recently implemented a similar multiagency program. Instead of having those who pose no threat to society await trial in jail, an electronic monitor can track their whereabouts through a global positioning system.

Howard Asher of the Ventura County public defender’s office said probation’s pretrial release program gives his office an opportunity to find alternatives to incarceration. About 70 percent of those represented by public defenders have been charged with nonviolent, nonserious crimes, he said.

But Chief Assistant District Attorney Jim Ellison said alternative programs make more work for his office because the cases stay in the system longer.

Prosecutors of misdemeanor offenses, the majority of cases that come through the district attorney’s office, already average 145 cases at any given time, he said. If the state doesn’t impose parole terms on the early-release inmates, the district attorney’s office could have hundreds more cases to prosecute if the former convicts re-offend.

Ellison noted that state inmates who committed minor thefts or drug offenses make up only 13 percent of the prison population. To release 40,000 or more prisoners—or 19 percent of its more than 210,000 inmates— the state will have to free at least 6 percent of the more serious offenders, he said.

Panelists said they didn’t know which offenders would gain early release. Oxnard Police Chief John Crombach said law enforcement officials from around the state have been working with the governor to find an acceptable offense level.

In a brief question-and-answer session, an audience member asked what programs are in place to keep former county inmates from returning to jail.

Ball said Sheriff Bob Brooks recently held the first job fair for county inmates. Thirty employers and 30 social service agencies showed up, and 70 inmates participated, he said.

“We intend to continue it because we knew it (would be) very successful,” Ball said.

Staples said the probation agency operates an adult-offender work furlough program and offers parolees literacy classes, drug and alcohol counseling and housing referrals.

Addressing social needs

The second set of panelists, officials from the county’s social service agencies, agreed the social needs of early-release inmates cannot be ignored and called for a partnership with communitybased social service agencies.

Barry Zimmerman, director of the county Human Services Agency, said helping the former state prisoners obtain jobs will be the principal focus of his agency.

The current job market will be a barrier; even when the economy is in good shape, ex-convicts have a difficult time finding employment, he said.

The Human Services Agency recently received funding to connect former prisoners with social services and programs, although the availability of such funds is sporadic and unpredictable.

Finding stable housing for them will be another barrier. Zimmerman said that of the inmates who participated in the sheriff’s job fair, 20 said they won’t have a home when they’re released. County agencies would do well to work with communitybased social service agencies to meet the challenges ahead, he said.

Studies show inmates are four times more likely to have a substance abuse disorder than the general population, said Patrick Zarate, director of the county’s alcohol and drug program. If 1,000 or more state prisoners make Ventura County home, the county’s drug and alcohol program is likely to see 30 percent more clients, he said. The department would need up to 15 more full-time employees to keep up with the increased workload.

“For a program our size . . . that would be a significant impact,” Zarate said.

Paul Miller, chair of the Ventura Council of Governments and Simi Valley mayor, said the council will likely consider forming a committee in January to explore what coordinated efforts can be taken to address the concerns brought up today.

“We’re not going to let this drop,” Miller said.