The Public Policy Institute of California
released a report summarizing statewide jail population
trends in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Not surprisingly,
the report explains that jail populations across the state have
declined—stating that between February 29 and April 11, all of
California’s counties reduced their jail populations by releasing
more people than they admitted.
The Judicial Council of California has launched the Pandemic
Continuity of Operations Working Group, which will quickly
collect best practices and publish a framework to help the
state’s 58 superior courts address interrupted services
in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group, a roster of
22 superior court presiding judges and court executive
officers from a Judicial Council advisory group, plans to publish
by early June its collection of best practices and guidance from
federal, state, and local entities.
A decision issued by the Fourth District Court of Appeal in
Ayala, et al. v. The Superior Court of San Diego
County addresses the application of the Judicial Council’s
emergency rule for a $0 bail schedule.
The Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) recently
implemented a Supplemental Jail Profile Survey to collect data
from county sheriffs and chief probation officers on average
daily population, bookings, and releases related to the COVID-19
pandemic. The supplemental jail and juvenile detention profile
surveys are now available on the
BSCC website.
Tuesday, April 14, Governor Newsom signed a new
Executive Order related to the discharge and reentry of juvenile
offenders from the state Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ).
The order shortens from 60 days to 30 days the notification
period for a scheduled discharge consideration hearing given to
the respective probation department, the court of the committing
county, and the youth’s counsel.
At its April 6 meeting, the Judicial Council
approved 11
temporary emergency rules, including setting bail statewide
at $0 for misdemeanors and lower-level felonies to “safely reduce
jail populations” and staying eviction and foreclosure
proceedings to protect Californians from losing their homes
during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Businesses will be able to “layaway” up to $50,000 of sales tax
liability pursuant to an announcement by the Governor today.
The deferral, which could come to as much as $3 billion statewide
and provide relief for up to 300,000 businesses, would have a
significant effect on county budgets, relying as they do on sales
tax revenues to fund 1991 and 2011 realignment programs,
transportation projects, public safety, and of course general
fund programs broadly.
On March 31, CDCR amplified actions to protect staff and inmates
at the state’s institutions by implementing additional measures
to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The measures aim to
increase both capacity and physical space at the state’s prisons,
which will allow the department to increase physical distancing
and assist it with isolation and quarantine efforts for suspected
or positive COVID-19 cases.
On March 16, California Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye
issued guidance to California trial courts seeking emergency
orders to adjust or suspend court operations in the wake of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Current California law circumscribes the authority of the Chief
Justice during emergencies. Presiding judges of county superior
courts may petition the Chief Justice—as chair of the Judicial
Council—for an emergency order to support their local needs.
ADVISORY: Due to the changing nature of directives
related to COVID-19, meeting information is subject to change.
For the latest California Courts news related to COVID-19,
visitnewsroom.courts.ca.gov/coronavirus-updates.
The Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) has set the
dates for three statewide listening sessions so that members of
the public can give comments on separate but related topics: the
agency’s efforts to improve jail inspections and the biennial
update of the adult regulations governing jail operations.
The Pretrial Reform and Operations Workgroup will host public
comment sessions on the use of pretrial risk assessment tools to
further its mission of reviewing and identifying next steps for
reforms to California’s system of pretrial release and detention.
