Prison reforms' results mixed after year

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Prison-reforms-results-mixed-after-year-3907655.php

Realignment changed the way judges sentence offenders by requiring people convicted of nonserious, nonviolent and nonsexual crimes to be sent to county jails or placed on local probation, instead of being sent to state prison - unless they have a violent crime in their past. 

It also changed the rules for parole so that such low-level offenders already in state prison at the time realignment began are monitored by county probation offices instead of the state parole department upon their release. And, existing parolees who violate their terms of release now go to jail, not prison. The state distributes about $6 billion a year to counties to help them pay for additional costs in dealing with the inmate influx.

Before realignment, criminal justice was meted out differently in California's 58 jurisdictions. The differences are even more visible with realignment because counties vary in how they have implemented the plan, including how realignment funds are spent, what programs are offered inside and outside of jails, and whether judges and sheriffs choose to jail large numbers of people awaiting trial.

Brown said the different ways counties approach realignment is part of the beauty of returning control to local government.

"Some people want to see more alternative sanctions and rehabilitation programs, and in some areas that are more conservative, they like a more 'lock 'em up' philosophy," Brown said. "Realignment is based on the idea of more local autonomy. ... It's not one size fits all."