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Riverside County Jails At 99-Percent Capacity Amid State Realignment Plan

RIVERSIDE (KNX 1070) — Riverside County jails are beginning to see the ugly side of California's prison realignment program.

KNX 1070's Brian Ping says that the county is reporting that its facility is at 99-percent capacity.

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The resulting overflow will leave the sheriff's department little choice but to start releasing some offenders early.

California's three month-old law calls for all non-violent, non-serious and non-sexually oriented criminals earning less than a three-year sentence to be incarcerated in county jails.

In the last three months, it's led to a 20-percent jump in the number of convicted felons being sent to county.

Adding to the county's burden is a requirement to track parolees who transferred from state, and prosecute them for parole violations.

The state has allocated $24 million dollars to Riverside to cover the costs of the new law, but county officials say that won't be enough.

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