Number of Merced County inmates drops after Prop 47 approved

MERCED COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- The November ballot measure that reduced some felonies to misdemeanors is already having an impact on local jails.

The way law enforcement agencies operate across California has changed significantly since the November election. That's because Proposition 47 immediately turned several felonies into misdemeanors, including drug possession, forgery, and any theft worth $950 or less.

"These crimes that were classified as a felony are not going to be investigated by the detectives. They're going to be left to the patrol officer who's responsible for handling the day in and day out calls for service," said Capt. Tom Trindad of the Merced Police Department.

Trindad says many suspects are now be cited and released, which means the county's two jails suddenly have more space. They had 885 bookings in October, compared to 536 since November 5.

"We've seen about a 24-percent reduction in bookings overall, subsequent of the enactment of Prop 47," said Sgt. Delray Shelton of the Merced County Sheriff's Office.

Shelton says jails across the state have reported similar statistics, and that the trend appears to have pros and cons. On one hand, it means more room for serious and violent offenders, and more money for rehabilitation programs. But authorities are concerned that potentially dangerous criminals are being left out in the streets.

"Any time you have somebody that's not acting in their right mind subsequent of drug usage and you just author a simple citation and you don't take them out of their element and incarcerate them, the propensity for violence and problems are there and are very great," said Shelton.

The Merced County public defender says his office is now extremely busy looking at past cases where clients may be eligible for release or resentencing under Prop 47, and he's working with the court system to make those changes as efficient as possible.