Work Program for Early-Release Inmates Pushed

Supervisor Gloria Molina proposed Friday that County Jail inmates released early because of budget cuts be required to participate in work-release programs.

Molina is asking Chief Administrative Officer Sally Reed and Sheriff Sherman Block to seek state legislation to that effect. Her proposal will come before the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.

“Right now the work-release program is a voluntary program,” explained Capt. Jeff Springs, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Some inmates serving time for misdemeanor crimes choose to get out of jail early and work off their time in work-release programs.

They can go home, but must report for community service jobs. Others stay in jail, knowing that federal population caps on the county’s facilities mean they will be released after serving only about one-third of their sentences.