Cutting Prison Crowding

Californians will vote on lighter sentences to ease overcrowding in prisons

California would be the largest state to relax sentencing rulesPhotograph by Noah Berger/Bloomberg

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By Michael B Marois

October 23, 2014 at 11:13 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

This article is part of the October 27, 2014 issue of businessweek.

Proposition 47 The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act

The Essentials
1. On Nov. 4, Californians will vote on Proposition 47, which would lighten penalties for some crimes to ease crowding in state prisons. Drug possession for personal use, writing bad checks under $950, shoplifting, and petty theft would become misdemeanors. As many as 10,000 people now serving time could apply for sentence reductions. According to a May report from the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, 39 percent of inmates are serving time for drug or property crimes.