Supervisors to Consider Motion That Could Lead to Depopulation of County’s Jails

The LA County Board of Supervisors will put forth a motion that would depopulate the LA County’s jail and eventually lead to the release of thousands of inmates in LA County communities.

The motion titled, Los Angeles County to take actionable next steps to depopulate and decarcerate the Los Angeles County Jails: Granting local authority, advocating for court and state support, and legislative changes was brought forth by Hilda Solis and Lindsey P. Horvath.

“Over the years, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has done a great deal to advance its “care first, jails last” agenda. As far back as 2015, the Board has taken steps to create, expand, and support alternatives to custody initiatives.”

The motion directs the Countywide Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee, in collaboration with JCOD and LA Sheriff’s Department (LASD), to engage with the 45 municipal law enforcement partners, identify interested partners, and work with those partners to develop MOUs, or other agreements, aimed at expanding the use of cite and release across the County.

The County is under numerous consent decrees and settlement agreements, including lawsuits about conditions in the jails, the treatment provided for incarcerated people with mental health needs, and severe overcrowding in the County jails. 

“Getting into compliance is becoming more difficult and challenging as the population becomes more complex. To better handle the numerous consent decrees, the Board, earlier this month, supported the motion to receive a report back from County departments, including LASD, that will include “exit strategies to enable the County to achieve compliance and resolve the lawsuit.”

However, the Board has limited authority to decarcerate and divert. That power largely rests with the sheriff, court, state legislature and governor. 

Legislative changes and reforms would also need to take place to safely depopulate vulnerable populations in the jails, such as those who have been deemed “medically fragile.”

To further commit the Board’s intention to “jails last”, in 2021, it created the Jail Closure Implementation Team (JCIT), with a firm mandate to safely close and demolish the Mens’ Central Jail. 

“To depopulate and decarcerate is a monumental task, and the Board is committed to redress historical wrongs, deeply rooted in systemic racism and prejudice, and reverse status quo responses to poverty, mental health and medical needs, and substance use dependencies.” the motion reads.