Interview with Mia Bird at Asterisk:
Asterisk: You’re responsible for managing one of the most comprehensive data sets of criminal outcomes for various criminal justice systems in California. It includes 12 counties and 60% of the state population. How did you put this resource together, and what kinds of outcomes you are tracking with it?
Mia: So we need to go back a bit. For decades, California was increasing its prison population and building new prisons to accommodate this growth. In 2006, the state reached a peak prison population of 173,000 inmates, which meant prisons were operating at over 170% of their design capacity. As a result, the state began to face lawsuits focused on its inability to provide adequate health care under such crowded conditions. One of the first steps the state took was to address revocations to prison through legislation that rewarded counties for reducing the number of people who fail probation and are sent to prison.
More here.