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The Legislative Analyst's Office has just published the following report:
 
Improving California's Prison Inmate Classification System

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) uses an inmate classification system to assign inmates to different housing security levels and varying degrees of supervision during their daily activities. Assignment to a housing security level is generally based on inmates’ assessed risk of misconduct­referred to as their “housing score.” The performance of the inmate classification system has implications for the safety of staff, inmates, and the public; prison operations and costs; the size of the inmate population; and inmates’ daily experiences in prison, including their access to rehabilitation opportunities.
 
In reviewing CDCR’s inmate classification system, we identified several issues that merit legislative consideration. For example, we found that CDCR may be assigning unnecessary security to inmates who are prone to engage in minor misconduct, but not in serious misconduct. This approach is inconsistent with the department’s goal to avoid placing inmates in more secure or restrictive settings than necessary. There are also several factors that call into question the accuracy of CDCR’s housing score methodology. Lastly, we note that CDCR currently maintains policies that may unnecessarily exclude certain inmates from the lowest security housing and supervision placements.
 
In order to address the above various concerns, we recommend the Legislature direct CDCR to contract with independent researchers to develop a new methodology for assigning inmates to a housing level. In addition, we recommend that the Legislature consider directing CDCR to create processes for allowing certain inmates to be placed into the lowest security settings.
 
This report is available using the following link: https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4023?utm_source=laowww&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=4023
 
 
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