The trials and tribulations offenders sentenced under California’s Three Strikes law go through are more challenging than any other category of offender, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Substance abuse and mental illness problems of three strikers were the subject of an investigation by Chronicle and California Watch reporters.
Data collected from psychological substance abuse and education profiles showed about one-third of all prisoners – including second- and third-strikers – need substance abuse rehabilitation, the report finds.
Since 2006, a risk assessment on 49,000 of 134,000 inmates in California prisons determined.
Three strikers are three and half times more addicted to alcohol and drugs than the 19 percent of low-risk offenders.
Nearly 70 percent of three strikers profiled showed a high need for substance abuse treatment compared to 48 percent of all inmates tested. The numbers are stark for third-strikers whose last offense was a burglary: 76 percent scored high risk for substance abuse.
When measuring inmates “criminal thinking” risk levels, which indicate whether they exhibit anger or antisocial behaviors that spur criminal activity, the data shows that the scores of third strikers are similar to those of inmates with no strikes on their records. Overall, roughly 30 percent of all prisoners have “high-risk” thought patterns.
The investigation found judges gave Three Strikers particularly long sentences even though they have “not necessarily committed violent offenses.”
However, since the passage of Proposition 36, the Three Strikes Reform Act, most of these type of sentencing problems will decrease and some offenders are being re-sentenced to modify their life terms.
The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation “provides in-prison programming to adult offenders. Programs include academic and vocational education, substance abuse treatment, cognitive-based behavioral programs, transitional services, and employment programs,” according to the Future of California Corrections. “All are aimed at reducing recidivism while keeping prisons and communities safe.”
Substance abuse treatment could have prevented some repeat offenders from becoming third-strikers, according to Southern Illinois University criminology professor Daryl Kroner, who was quoted in the Chronicle report.
A 2009 audit estimated the Three Strike Law would cost an additional $19.2 billion in prison costs, if continued.
