AB 109, also known as "Prison Realignment" is the shifting of thousands of inmates from state prison to county jails.

The Governor claims that shifting inmates to the counties will save money and relieve prison overcrowding by returning "lower-level" offenders to local authorities who can manage them in "smarter" ways.

In reality, realignment is a plan for the state to transfer some of its budget problems to cash-strapped counties and to release prisoners early.  There are NO COST SAVINGS IN THIS PLAN as the prisoners are being transferred from the state level to the county level.  In fact, THIS WILL LEAD TO HIGHER COSTS TO TAX PAYERS.

Given that the state will only be providing funding to house up to 10,000 more prisoners, it is likely that many state felons will be granted early release instead of being housed in county jails.  The early release of these felons will put innocent Californians at greater risk of becoming crime victims.

On October 1st, when this plan went into effect, thousands of other dangerous criminals who will serve their sentences in county jails may be set free prior to serving their full sentence in state prison, due to county prison capacity levels. There are more than 500 felony crimes that qualify for realignment.  Below is a sampling of just a few:

Vehicle Felonies

• Vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated
• Involuntary manslaughter
• Fourth offense DUI
• Reckless driving causing bodily injury
• DUI-related reckless driving resulting in specified serious injuries
• Evading a peace officer while driving the wrong way
• Willfully or negligently causing a train crash by an engineer

Mass Destruction Felonies

• Possession of bomb-making component substances with the intent to make a destructive device
• Possession, exploding, igniting a destructive device or explosive with intent to injure or intimidate or destroy property
• Possession of specified restricted biological agents
• Exploding a destructive device with intent to injure, intimidate, or to wrongfully destroy or injure property

Drug Felonies

• Importation, transportation of a controlled substance
• Sale of controlled substance on school grounds
• Sale of controlled substance to a minor under 14 in a public park
• Barricading a building to prevent law enforcement entry of a place used to sell heroin, PCP, methamphetamine, crack cocaine, etc.
• Manufacturer of a controlled substance who illegally disposes of hazardous chemical byproducts
• Possession for sale of PCP
• Trafficking in heroine, crack cocaine, cocaine, methamphetamine, or PCP within 1,000 feet of a drug treatment center
• Possession of specified chemicals with intent to manufacture PCP
• Possession of specified chemicals with intent to manufacture methamphetamine

Medical Felonies

• Sexual relations with two or more clients/patients by physicians and surgeons, psychotherapists, or drug abuse counselors
• Practicing dentistry without a license under circumstances creating a risk of great bodily harm, serious physical or mental illness, or death
• Practicing medicine without a license
• Prescription drug forgery
• Wholesaler, manufacture, or employee of same furnishing a controlled substance for other than legitimate medical purposes
• Counterfeiting prescription forms

Firearm Felonies

• Felony violations of the gun-free school zone act of 1995
• Firearms-related violations within a playground or youth center
• Bringing specified deadly weapons onto school grounds
• Brandishing a firearm in a threatening manner while an occupant of a motor vehicle
• Unauthorized possession or transport of a machinegun
• Manufacture, sale of assault weapons

Miscellaneous Felonies

• Mutilating, maliciously destroying, etc. a veterans' memorial
• Child abandonment
• Hazing resulting in serious bodily injury
• Manufacturing counterfeit birth certificates
• Felony identity theft
• Mortgage fraud
• Insurance fraud
• Felony animal abuse
• Felony dog fighting and related offenses
• Financial aspects of elder abuse
• Inciting a riot which results serious bodily injury
• Participation in an act of lynching
• Conspiracy to commit a crime against the president, vice-president, any governor, any U.S. Justice or judge, or secretary of any of the federal executive departments
• Battery against a peace officer, firefighter, EMT, probation officer, etc.
• Involuntary servitude (i.e., holding someone in slavery)
• Hate crimes
• Second violation of domestic violence-related protective order
• Statutory rape (this is only a felony where there is a specified age disparity between the defendant and the victim)
• Grand theft
• Knowingly selling firearms to criminal street gang members, knowing that the firearm will be used to commit a felony

For a complete listing of California's "non serious" "non violent" crimes {click here}

AB 109 Prison Realignment: Reducing Prison Population

AB 109 Prison Realignment: Sex Offenders Remain Free After Violations

AB 109 Prison Realignment: Recidivism Numbers Not What They Seem

AB 109 Prison Realignment: CDCR Says "Lightweight" Offenders

AB 109 Prison Realignment: Releasing Dangerous Sex Offenders Onto Our Streets

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON AB 109 PLEASE VISIT WWW.RESTOREPUBLICSAFETY.COM