A new investigation from CalMatters examines how the law is playing out in courtrooms and jails across the state, and finds that even supporters of the measure acknowledge significant gaps in the system meant to help people struggling with addiction.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, who backed the proposition, said the state has yet to deliver on its end of the deal. “People are waiting and dying on the streets for lack of a proper treatment system,” Mahan said. “The fundamental problem remains, which is that the state has refused to take ownership of building a robust treatment system that is going to serve the needs of people.”

Under Proposition 36, certain drug possession and theft offenses that were previously misdemeanors can now be charged as a “treatment-mandated felony.” Defendants facing those charges are given a choice: enter treatment or face prison time. But the law leaves it up to individual counties to decide how long that treatment period should last, and the resulting patchwork varies wildly. In Ventura County, treatment programs run about three months. In San Luis Obispo County, participants may be required to stay in the system for up to two years before their charges are dismissed.

That inconsistency can have real consequences for people trying to rebuild their lives. Aaron Kasper, who completed a three-month residential treatment program in Sonoma County after being accused of possessing fentanyl, expected his case to be resolved once he finished. Instead, he spent the rest of a court-mandated year undergoing random drug tests, attending court hearings, outpatient sessions and self-help meetings.

Because Kasper had entered a plea deal, he knew a felony on his record would make finding a job difficult. He lived off his savings and held off on his job search until just two weeks before his yearlong obligation ended.

“I tried to make the best of a horrible situation,” Kasper said.

The findings raise fresh questions about whether California’s approach to addressing addiction through the criminal justice system is delivering the outcomes voters were promised, or simply shifting the burden onto defendants navigating an inconsistent and, at times, unforgiving process.

CalMatters is partnering with the University of California, Riverside’s School of Public Policy for a public conversation on Sept. 24 in Riverside about the news organization’s investigation into the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department’s seizure of mail ballots and what it could mean for future elections. Details and registration are available through CalMatters’ events page.

In other statewide news, a once-reliably conservative congressional district in Northern California has become one of the most closely watched U.S. House races in the country, with healthcare policy taking center stage. Dr. Richard Pan, a pediatrician and former state senator known for his advocacy of childhood vaccines, is challenging Rep. Kevin Kiley, a two-term incumbent who left the Republican Party to run as an independent. Pan supports universal health coverage and argues that changes to Medicaid under the Trump administration are driving up costs for Californians. Kiley opposes vaccine mandates and single-payer healthcare, placing blame instead on state lawmakers in Sacramento for the high cost of living.

The district, which covers portions of Yolo, Sacramento and Placer counties, has drawn heightened attention after redistricting split Placer County into three left-leaning districts. Julann Brown, chair of the Placer County Democratic Party, said the change has reenergized local political engagement. “Now we have three winnable Democratic seats,” she said. “We’ve become relevant in a way that we didn’t expect.”

Meanwhile, legislation banning child marriage in California is now sitting on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk after nearly ten years of failed attempts to pass similar measures. Under current law, anyone under 18 can marry with parental and judicial consent, and roughly 9,000 minors are married in California each year, the vast majority of them girls marrying adult men. Critics argue the practice effectively legalizes relationships that would otherwise be considered statutory rape. Previous bills stalled amid opposition from groups such as the ACLU and Planned Parenthood, which have said marriage can provide minors with legal protections, including paths to emancipation. Supporters of this year’s bill believe political shifts, including federal funding cuts targeting organizations like Planned Parenthood, may reduce resistance to the measure.

In immigration news, a federal judge has ruled that immigration enforcement agents likely violated the Constitution by making warrantless arrests without first assessing whether individuals posed a flight risk. The decision marks a victory for immigration advocates suing to halt the practice.

In commentary, CalMatters columnist Dan Walters criticizes state leaders for withholding billions in education funding while continuing to spend heavily on pet projects and travel. Contributor Jim Newton argues that Los Angeles mayoral candidates are too focused on whether to fire the police chief, rather than examining how to properly evaluate the department’s performance. And author Kevin Waite reflects on the legacy of Biddy Mason, the formerly enslaved woman who built a real estate empire and helped shape Los Angeles into the city it is today.

Original source: CalMatters

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The measure, approved statewide in 2024 and closely watched here in the Inland Empire and across Southern California, created a new “treatment-mandated felony” for repeat drug offenses. Defendants can avoid up to three years behind bars by pleading guilty and completing court-ordered treatment. Complete the program, and the felony disappears from the record.

But an analysis of data from 15 California counties with the heaviest caseloads under the new law found that only a small share of people arrested on these charges ever make it into treatment — and fewer still finish it. Statewide, of nearly 18,700 felony drug cases filed under Prop. 36 last year, only 17% of defendants opted into treatment, and just 57 cases statewide ended in dismissal after someone graduated a program.

In Orange County, which logged more Prop. 36 referrals than any other county examined, 1,311 people were referred for drug treatment as of February. Only 314 agreed to enter a program. Fewer than half of those were actively receiving care, and just 15 had graduated.

The findings raise questions for Inland Empire residents and officials alike, since Riverside and San Bernardino counties — like their counterparts statewide — are grappling with the same fundamental problem: Prop. 36 arrived with big promises but little money to back them up.

**A law without a budget**

Proposition 36, championed by district attorneys and sheriffs including several from Southern California, was sold to voters as a way to combat homelessness, addiction and retail theft simultaneously. It rolled back parts of a 2014 measure that had reduced many drug and theft crimes to misdemeanors in an effort to ease prison overcrowding.

Gov. Gavin Newsom opposed the initiative, warning it amounted to an “unfunded mandate” that risked reviving the excesses of the War on Drugs. That prediction has, at least partially, borne out. Voters approved the policy with no dedicated funding stream, and while the Legislature has since allocated money, advocates say it falls far short of what’s needed.

This year’s state budget included just $50 million for pretrial services, behavioral health programs and court workloads tied to Prop. 36 — a fraction of the $650 million that lawmakers pushing for full implementation had sought.

“The statute basically said, ‘We will fix everything for you’ — we’ll come up with a mental health plan, a drug addiction plan, a job plan, a housing plan,” said Tracie Olson, chief public defender in Yolo County. “And none of that happened.”

**Inconsistent rules, inconsistent outcomes**

Perhaps most striking is how differently counties have chosen to apply the law. The length of time someone must remain in treatment before charges are dropped ranges from as little as three months in Ventura County to as long as two years in San Luis Obispo County. Some counties, such as San Francisco, have made almost no arrests under the new provisions at all.

Because Prop. 36 does not include a “washout period” for old convictions, some public defenders report seeing felony charges built on drug convictions dating back decades — sometimes to the 1980s — even when a defendant has been sober and out of the system for years.

That’s what happened to Nicco Pierstorff, a 40-year-old Orange County resident who had already beaten a methamphetamine addiction and rebuilt his life, landing steady work and an apartment in Buena Park. After police found drugs in a backpack in his car last year — one he says belonged to someone else — his history of arrests from nearly a decade earlier qualified him for a new felony charge under Prop. 36.

Pierstorff completed six months of treatment, including twice-weekly drug testing, group counseling and regular court appearances, and had his charge dismissed this past spring. Despite his initial anger at being swept up in the system, he now credits the program with helping him understand the trauma behind his past addiction.

“At first I thought it would be a waste of time because I was already sober,” he said. “But being in Prop. 36 really did help me a lot.”

**Treatment beds in short supply**

Even defendants eager to get help often find the system unable to accommodate them. In Orange County, which has fewer than 300 residential treatment beds, wait times have stretched from about a week before Prop. 36 to as long as six weeks now, according to Ian Kemmer, the county’s director of behavioral health services. In the meantime, people are placed in sober living homes that don’t offer the clinical treatment they need — a dangerous gap, since addiction specialists say swift intervention is critical to keeping people from relapsing.

In Santa Clara County, Judge Stephen Manley, who oversees drug and mental health cases, said the shortage extends across every diversion pathway the county offers.

“We are simply out of treatment in my county,” Manley said. “Whether you’re Prop. 36 or probation or mental health diversion, you have to wait a long time to get into treatment.”

Housing remains another unmet piece of the puzzle. In several counties studied, more than half the people referred for evaluation were homeless — 61% in Santa Clara County and 62% in Orange County. Most counties don’t even track how many participants ultimately find stable housing while in treatment.

**Mixed results, mixed opinions**

Not everyone views the rollout as a failure. San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan points to her county as a bright spot, noting that 71% of defendants who pleaded guilty to a Prop. 36 drug felony began the path toward mandated treatment, with fewer than 5% receiving jail or prison sentences. Still, county data show that only a third of people referred for evaluation ultimately accepted treatment, and just two had graduated as of December.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, one of the measure’s most prominent Democratic backers, argues the core policy isn’t at fault — the state’s failure to invest in treatment infrastructure is.

“People are waiting and dying on the streets for lack of a proper treatment system,” Mahan said. “The state has refused to take ownership of building a robust treatment system.”

Others, including Greg Totten of the California District Attorneys Association, maintain the law is functioning largely as designed, with the biggest obstacle being a shortage of treatment capacity at the local level rather than any flaw in the statute itself.

**Success stories amid the gaps**

For some participants, the program has proven life-changing despite its shortcomings. Gustavo Meza, arrested last year in San Mateo County on a Prop. 36 drug charge, says he likely would have died from his addiction had he not been swept into the justice system. He had overdosed multiple times, including days before his arrest, and was homeless at the time.

It took nearly 10 months for the courts to formally enroll him in the program — during which time Meza had already sought out treatment on his own and gotten sober. Today he works two jobs, attends group counseling and hopes to eventually become a substance abuse counselor and reconnect with his young daughter.

“I’m sober, clear-minded, not doing the stuff I used to be doing,” Meza said. “I just want to start nice and slow.”

As lawmakers weigh whether to direct more funding toward Prop. 36 implementation, local officials across the region say the law’s underlying goals remain sound — but without a substantial investment in treatment beds, housing and mental health services, they warn that many defendants who want help will continue to find the system unable to provide it.

Original source: CalMatters

The post Prop. 47 Pledged Treatment Over Jail — Many Californians Are Still Falling Through the Cracks appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

The store management explained that although the policy had been posted on their front door, some individuals took advantage of it, leading to theft. “We know this is inconvenient for everyone, but we want to ensure that we have products for you all as well as not lose any so we can keep pricing affordable,” the store stated in its post.

In a show of support for the community, the store also offered assistance to customers struggling to afford groceries. “If anyone is struggling, please do not resort to theft. Please ask for one of the owners, and we will see what we can do to help,” the management wrote, as reported by KTLA.

This policy change comes amid a significant surge in retail theft across California, which has seen shoplifting increase nearly 40% in 2023 compared to the previous year, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. In response, many retailers have started locking up a wider range of products.

California voters approved Proposition 36 in 2024, which reinstated stricter penalties for theft and lowered the felony threshold for shoplifting back to $450. This was a rollback of aspects of the 2014 Proposition 47, which had reclassified nonviolent offenses, including shoplifting goods valued under $950, as misdemeanors, according to Yahoo News.

The post Hemet Grocery Outlet Store Alters Bag Policy Amid Theft Surge appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

He is set to make the announcement at an 11:30 a.m. event at Avila’s Historic 1929 Event Center in Riverside.

The sheriff’s campaign statement says he has been a law enforcement professional for more than 30 years, and “He believes in faith, family and service above self.” He’s expected to be joined by his family and several area elected officials at Monday’s announcement.

Bianco was first elected sheriff of Riverside County in 2018 and was re-elected in 2022. His tough-on-crime stance was recently showcased as he advocated for Proposition 36, which passed in Nov. 2024. The proposition calls for increased penalties for certain retail theft and drug-related crimes.

A proud supporter of President Trump, Bianco most recently spoke out against alleged rumors of ICE raids being carried out by deputies within the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department — releasing a video in which he also criticized California’s sanctuary state law. He has called SB 54 “dangerous” and has vowed to “fight to reform” it.

During the COVID lockdowns, Bianco joined multiple sheriffs statewide in opposing the use of law enforcement resources to enforce mask mandates and curfews, Some lawmakers viewed Bianco’s and the other sheriffs’ positions as detrimental to public health policies.

In 2023, Bianco faced two deputy line-of-duty shooting deaths in his department. After speaking at Deputy Isaiah Cordero’s memorial service, nearly three weeks later, Bianco again faced a second department tragedy and delivered remarks at Deputy Darnell Calhoun’s memorial service.

At Cordero’s service, he blasted the system that he felt led to the deputy’s shooting death.

“This tragedy should have been (prevented) by the criminal justice system,” Bianco said. “This suspect was on his third strike in 2021. But instead of receiving a sentence of 25 years to life in state prison, a judge lowered his bail. He failed to appear for sentencing … and the same judge released him again. We would not be here today if this judge had done her job.”

The sheriff has been vocal about his differences with Gov. Gavin Newsom, saying in an earlier interview that “we don’t agree on much of anything.”

While Newsom will not be on the ballot for the November 2026 general election, the field of prospective candidates has been growing. Last year, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis declared her candidacy, along with former Los Angeles Mayor and Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa and former State Controller Betty Yee, all Democrats.

Attorney General Rob Bonta told Politico recently that he won’t be running for governor in 2026 while Kamala Harris brushed off speculation during a visit surveying the Palisades Fire site earlier this month, neither confirming nor refuting reports that she will run.

The post Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco to announce run for California governor appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

Bianco is expected to make an official announcement on his coming run Monday, according to the source. Last week, Attorney General Rob Bonta told Politico he won’t be running for governor in 2026 while Kamala Harris brushed off speculation during a visit surveying the Palisades Fire site earlier this month, neither confirming nor refuting reports that she will run.

A proud supporter of President Trump, Bianco most recently spoke out against alleged rumors of ICE raids being carried out by deputies within the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department — releasing a video in which he also criticized the California’s sanctuary state law. While confirming deputies were not making immigration-related arrests, he slammed the legislation, SB 54, calling it “dangerous” and vowing to “fight to reform” it.

The law, also known as the California Values Act, prohibits most cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities, barring local police agencies from sharing information about the immigration status of detainees or arresting individuals solely on the basis of their status. Bianco said he would still try to cooperate with ICE in making removals from jails.

“Stories of deputies conducting raids at schools, businesses and churches are simply not true,” Bianco said. “I will do everything I can — within the confines of the sanctuary state laws of California — to cooperate with ICE to remove criminals from our jails.”

Last year, he rallied support for Proposition 36, the ballot measure cracking down on theft and drug-related crimes by increasing penalties and allowing felony charges be filed while also mandating treatment for certain drug offenses. It drew criticism from opponents who compared it to the hardline policies of the War on Drugs, such as Gov. Gavin Newsom, who argued it would fill up jails and wouldn’t receive sufficient funding for the required-treatment component of the law.

As a longtime critic of Newsom, Bianco has blasted the governor’s leadership, saying that he’s slashed budgets for corrections and let out prisoners early. During the COVID pandemic, he challenged the state’s stay-at-home orders, saying in part, that the sheriff’s department would “not be blackmailed, bullied or used as muscle” against county residents in enforcing those orders. 

Bianco made national headlines last year when deputies with his department arrested a man outside President Trump’s rally in Coachella Valley on suspicion of gun charges. Upon announcing the arrest, Bianco said he believed deputies had thwarted an assassination attempt. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office later said that former President Trump was not in any danger while a federal official told CBS News there was no indication of an assassination attempt in connection with the man’s arrest.

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But then I realized I already have.

I live in California.

If you do, too, you might be hungover, right about now. Or you’re wondering if this is all a nightmare.

It’s not. Well, it kind of is.

Vice President Kamala Harris, a California native, lost to former President Trump, and it wasn’t even close. A convicted male felon ran against a female former prosecutor and won decisively, running the table even in so-called battleground states, and Republicans also reclaimed the Senate and could well take the House.

A guy whose own running mate referred to him as “America’s Hitler,” called him a reprehensible idiot and “a total fraud,” will soon be moving back into the White House after months of juvenile name-calling and vulgarity.

Putin is partying. Ukraine is weeping. And you’re Googling real estate listings in Portugal, or Canada, or maybe you’re looking into those homes in Italy that sell for $1.

No need.

You live in California, which stands apart (along with 18 other states).

Not entirely, of course. Roughly 40% of the state’s votes will be logged for Trump when the counting is complete, with red streaks running down the center of the state.

And California had its own mini-version of a rightward tilt, with Proposition 36 (tougher penalties for criminal and drug offenses) leading in a rout as of Wednesday morning, and criminal justice reform-minded L.A. County Dist. Atty. George Gascón’s reelection bid going down in flames.

To be fair, California’s dominant, super-majority liberal leadership has been feeble in the face of homelessness, income inequality, child poverty and the housing affordability crisis.

Not that Trump policies as president had much of an impact on those problems in California or any other state, and not that he’s come up with any new or ambitious plans since then.

“The state of California is a mess,” Trump said in September, using us as a foil, but also as a springboard, casting a global economic powerhouse as a failure, a sanctuary cesspool and a symbol of wretchedly woke excess.

Insult, or badge of honor?

California said no to the candidate who has waged an assault on women’s reproductive rights and called his female opponent dumb as a rock.

No to the candidate who called climate change a hoax.

No to the candidate who calls immigrants savages and animals.

No to the candidate who has embraced RFK Jr., who wants to pull vaccines off shelves, get fluoride out of drinking water, and who knows — maybe send the nation’s science teachers off to a gulag somewhere.

No to the candidate whose allies put together a second-term playbook called Project 2025, which would seek to wage war nationally on the very idea of California’s progressive policies on abortion, inclusion, gun control, immigration, LGBTQ+ rights and the environment.

No to the candidate who appeals to the worst in us.

Jimmy Carter once said, “We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.”

Trump once said, “They are eating the dogs. The people that came in, they are eating the cats. … They are eating the pets of the people that live there.”

In California, we did not vote for that candidate.

We understand that immigration reform is badly needed but know that Trump’s promised deportation of millions of people would cost a fortune, destroy major industries, raise the prices of goods and services, rip families apart and cripple the economy.

In California, defeat does not signal the end of the fight (the state could well end up in court, forced to defend and preserve its progressive policies against Trump attacks). And don’t forget that while we stand apart, we do not stand alone.

The other states that went for Harris are Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, New Mexico, Minnesota, Illinois, Virginia, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.

So I suppose you could consider moving to one of those places in these ever-more-divided United States.

But I was born in California and plan to stay put for now, here in the home of the resistance.

The post Column: Trump return could be a growing California nightmare. But leave the U.S? No need appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

Still haven’t cast your ballot? Here are some last-minute reminders:

• Vote-by-mail ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day, Nov. 5. Those unsure if their ballot will make it in the mail in time can also bring their ballots to any polling location in the state or a ballot drop box in their counties by 8 p.m. on Election Day.
• Traditional in-person voting: Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Nov. 5. Click here to find your polling location.
• The deadline to register to vote in the Nov. 5 election was Oct. 21, but residents can also register in person on Election Day for a conditional ballot. Click here to learn more.

Local Races

Riverside County has a plethora of contests. Depending on where you live, your ballot may be chock full of local races to decide. Here’s a look at everything being voted on in Riverside County (scroll to see all the races):

—U.S. Senate

A consequential contest to watch is the race for the U.S. Senate seat long-held by the late Dianne Feinstein. In fact, voters are casting their ballot twice in this race, choosing a candidate to finish out Feinstein’s current term and again for the next term, which begins in 2025.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey are both vying for the seat. Schiff, a progressive favorite in the Golden State, has served as a Democratic congressman here since 2000, representing the state’s 30th Congressional District in Los Angeles County.

Garvey, formerly an All-Star for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres, advanced in March to the November ballot as a first-time political candidate. Republicans have failed to advance a candidate in two of the last three U.S. Senate races, making Garvey’s defeat of Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, a rare feat for the GOP in blue California.

According to a recent poll from the Public Policy Institute of California, Schiff holds a 28 point-lead (63 percent to 35 percent) over Garvey. Schiff gained widespread name recognition for his role in Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. Read more about that race here.

—U.S. House

As for congressional races, the state’s most competitive contests for the U.S. House seats in California are primarily in three regions — the Central Valley, Orange County and the Inland Empire, according to the Public Policy Institute of California’s most recent election report. The competitive races include districts 3, 9, 13, 22, 27, 40, 41, 45, 47 and 49.

Currently, the GOP holds seven of these seats. Here’s a brief breakdown of the candidates in each competitive area:

• District 3, which hugs the Nevada border from Death Valley to the Sacramento suburbs, will see another contest between Republican Incumbent Kevin Kiley and returning Democratic candidate Jessica Morse. Kiley previously attempted to run for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s seat in a failed recall attempt.
• District 9 centered in Stockton pits Democratic incumbent against Republican challenger Kevin Lincoln II.
• In District 13 covering the San Joaquin Valley, Republican incumbent John Duarte — who flipped the seat red in 2022 for the first time since 1974 — will go up against Democrat Adam Gray. Since Redistricting in 2022, the district is considered a left-leaning swing district whose voters went for Biden in 2020 but chose a Republican representative in 2022.
• District 22 in the San Joaquin Valley will have Republican incumbent David G. Valadao challenge Democrat Rudy Salas. Both candidates were neck-and-neck during the March primary, with Valadao receiving 32.7 votes to Salas’ 31.3. Redistricting has shifted the 22nd to the left since 2020, making Valadao one of the most vulnerable Republican incumbents in the House.
• In District 27, which covers northeast Los Angeles County, GOP incumbent Mike Garcia is pitted against George Whitesides, a former chief of staff of NASA during Barack Obama’s presidency and a formidable challenger for Garcia, who has held the seat since 2020.
• In District 40, covering northeast Riverside County, Democrat Joe Kerr will challenge Republican incumbent Young Kim.
• District 41 will have Republican incumbent Ken Calvert face off against a much younger Democratic contender, Will Rollins. Calvert is the longest-serving GOP member in California Congress. Rollins, who is gay, has clashed with Calvert over LGBTQ+ issues, which may prove to be a challenge for him in a district that encompasses Palm Springs.
• Orange County’s District 45, covering inland north county communities, is diverse both politically and by ethnicity, since the area hosts the largest population of Vietnamese people in the nation. There, Republican incumbent Michelle Steel will face off against Derek Tran, a Democrat known for his advocacy for workers’ rights.
• District 47, another Orange County stronghold, is currently represented by Rep. Katie Porter, who did poorly in the March primary and is not seeking reelection. Former GOP state legislator Scott Baugh, who lost to Porter previously, will challenge Sen. Dave Min.
• District 49 will see Democratic incumbent Mike Levin go up against Republican challenger Matt Gunderson.

—State Measures

Of course, it wouldn’t be a major election in California if there were not a slew of proposed propositions on the ballot.

There are 10 statewide propositions being voted on, including two $10 billion bond measures for school construction and to address climate change. There are also two amendments to the state constitution, one which would repeal the unenforceable ban on same-sex marriage and another that would make it easier for bond measures to pass by lowering the voter threshold from the current supermajority needed to approve bond measures.

However, the most hot-button measure on the ballot is Proposition 36, which seeks to reverse some of the criminal justice reforms passed when voters approved Proposition 47 a decade ago. If Prop 36 passes, it could significantly increase prison time for some drug and theft offenses that are currently misdemeanors.

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