Please sign this one from the ACLU on sentencing reform! We should be spending money on more constructive things than on locking up non-violent, low level offenders! Thank you!
Our budget – and our priorities – are out of balance.
California is slashing funds for education and social services, while billions in prison spending remain untouched in the current budget. Once the world leader in higher education, we now spend more on incarceration than on our public universities.
We need to restore balance to our state. Sentencing reform is an integral part of the solution.
By reducing penalties for low level offenses, the governor and legislative leaders can redirect hundreds of millions of dollars toward our most pressing priorities - public schools and universities, social services and public safety.
Nearly 8,500 people are locked up in CA state prison today serving felony sentences for these offenses at a cost to taxpayers of over 2 million per year. Others can receive felony sentences for writing a 0 bad check.
California voters believe that we are locking up too many people, and that sentences are too harsh, particularly for minor offenses. We can save money and keep our communities safe by reserving felony sentences for serious crimes. This is one of the defining civil rights issues of our time, and we need your help.
Please sign our petition to the governor and legislative leaders.
https://secure.aclu.org/site/SPageNavigator/CN_petition
Original: ACLU of California: Sign the Petition: Bring Back Balance