NewsWatch

24

Aug 2009

Corrections to issue 1,300 new layoff notices in wake of budget cuts

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said Monday it will issue 1,300 new layoff notices in Sacramento, Amador, Fresno and elsewhere after the assumed $1.2 billion cut to the department's budget. Department chief of...

24

Aug 2009

Panel to study prison sentencing removed from spending package

The action was taken by Assembly Speaker Karen Bass. It was unclear whether Senate leader Darrell Steinberg would go along with the limited version. The sentencing review is one of his priorities. Assembly Speaker Karen Bass on Monday...

22

Aug 2009

Willie Horton haunts debate as California Assembly rejects prison cuts

Willie Horton's shadow haunts the Capitol as lawmakers wrestle with how to cut $1.2 billion from state prisons without endangering public safety. More than two decades after Republican presidential candidate George H.W. Bush used televised...

21

Aug 2009

California Senate OKs plan to reduce prison population

The proposal, opposed by the GOP, would cut the time lesser offenders spend behind bars and on parole. The bill stalls in the Assembly, where a watered-down version may be considered. After an impassioned debate over the cost and benefit...