The passage of Prop 20 may help.
Dear California Residents and Property Owners:
Have you had an increase in tenant complaints about car break-ins, package thefts and overall crime in recent years? Have you wondered what could have caused or influenced this increase in crime?
If you voted in 2014, you may remember Proposition 47 being passed, which reduced most nonviolent crimes, such as firearm and vehicle theft, grand theft, and other types of theft that did not exceed $950, from a felony to misdemeanor. And if you voted in 2016, you may remember Proposition 57 passing, which increased parole and good behavior opportunities for felons convicted of non-violent crime as defined in state law. At first, this could sound like a good idea, considering California has struggled with an overpopulation of our prisons and that there is hope in rehabilitation. However, one could argue these initiatives incentivized criminals to increase their crimes due to the chances of conviction decreasing and chances of earning early parole, if convicted, increasing. Think about it… if you knew you could break into someone’s car and sit in jail overnight, then be let go the next day, what would stop you from doing that? (Other than a good moral compass, of course). Even though there have been no confirmed studies that link the crime rate with Props 47 and 57, I think we can all agree that there has been an increase in, what the state deems, nonviolent crimes. However, violent or not these, crimes affect all of us residing in this beautiful state. So, what can YOU do?
On the November ballot, you can vote YES on California Proposition 20, which proposes to amend the criminal sentencing and supervision laws that were passed by Prop 47 and Prop 57. If passed, theft and fraud crimes such as firearm theft and vehicle theft will be charged as misdemeanors OR felonies, rather than just misdemeanors. The law also requires convicted persons of specific misdemeanors to submit a DNA sample for the state’s database. Requiring convicted persons to submit DNA samples can help clear innocent suspects and the wrongfully convicted and also help convict guilty criminals.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has a parole review program where convicted felons of nonviolent crimes could be released on parole upon completing their sentence for his or her offense. Proposition 20 would require the parole review board to consider additional factors before deciding whether to release a felon on parole, such as the person’s age, mental state, and previous record. The initiative also lists 51 crimes that will be deemed as ‘violent felony offenses’, which will be excluded from the parole review program. Some of these violent crimes include: robbery, carjacking, first degree burglary and conspiracy to commit an offense. This means criminals convicted of any of the listed 51 crimes, will not have the chance to plead their case for sentence reduction to the parole review board. If Proposition 20 passes, criminals will need to think twice before breaking into your car or your home.
Vote YES on Proposition 20.
Visit this website for more information.