Judge Approves New Law Increasing Credit for Time Served at Sacramento County Jail


 The tortured tale of time credits at the Sacramento County jail seems to finally have come to a close. Judge Loren McMaster on Friday ruled against the request by the Sacramento Sheriff's Deputies Association to block implementation at the jail of a new state law increasing the amount of early release time inmates could earn for good behavior.

The ruling comes after a hearing that saw the sheriff's deputies association on one side arguing against the new law, and the Sacramento district attorney's office, Sacramento public defender's office, and the state attorney general's office all on the other side arguing for it.

Keep in mind that before this new law went into effect January 25, state prison and county jail inmates in California were already able to earn early release if they met good behavior requirements. https://askcompetentlawyer.com/civil-litigation/ All the new law did was increase the amount of credit that could be earned. (See our previous posts for full explanations of this.) The new law was seen as necessary because of the twin problems of budget constraints and overcrowding in jails and prisons.

Throughout this battle, the sheriff's deputies association has made two arguments: the new law was meant to increase time credits at state prisons only, not county jails; and the increased number of prisoners obtaining early release would endanger the public.

In the end, McMaster was not persuaded. County jail inmates will now get one day of credit toward early release for each day they serve with good behavior.

The actions by the deputies' union do raise questions, though, especially after the deputies were opposed in court by their law enforcement partners, the district attorney and the attorney general. It seems clear to us that the new law applies to county jails, not just state prisons. If the deputies want to return to the provisions of the old law, they are better served trying to get the legislature and governor to pass an amended law rather than circumventing the legislative process.

What was their motivation?

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