The Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) report,
California Probation in the Era of Reform looks at how
recent criminal justice reforms, 2011 Realignment and Proposition
47 have altered the role of county probation departments in
California. In 2011, the state enacted public safety realignment,
which shifted the management of lower-level felons from state
prison and parole to county jail and probation.
As part of this effort, county probation departments were tasked
with an increase of offenders to supervise. In 2014, voters
approved Proposition 47, which required that certain drug and
property offenses be charged as misdemeanors. This proposition
required that these individuals serve their sentences in county
jail instead of state prison.
This report uses newly available data from 12 counties between
October 2011 and October 2015, to describe the changing
characteristics of individuals under probation supervision in
California. To view the report,
please click here.
