“We need to rethink that,” Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesman Bill Sessa said, although he said part of the proposal was withdrawn because of some “confusion and misunderstanding.”
Media outlets, including The Sacramento Bee, reported this week that the plan that prison officials had been considering would have changed a long-standing policy that excludes inmates whose crimes fall under the state’s legal definition of a “violent offense.” That list includes armed robbery, rape, murder, mayhem and 19 other crimes.
About 3,800 lower-level offenders have worked in fire camps this year, mostly cutting fire breaks during the state’s drought-fueled wildfires. However, their numbers are dwindling because of changes to California sentencing laws. Criminals convicted of lower-level crimes now go to local jails or receive parole.
