Signs of realignment's failures
By The Bakersfield Californian
I want to commend The Californian on resisting what the Los Angeles Times is doing -- allowing volumes of misinformation to freely flow to the public concerning the consequences of Gov. Jerry Brown's prison realignment program.
I couldn't believe my eyes as I stumbled across Barry Krisberg's commentary on the failing realignment. I came to the conclusion that he is either grossly out of touch with reality and has failed to research his ill-founded claims, or he is deliberately lying to promote some sort of personal and/or political agenda.
I simply contrasted Krisberg's article, "Finding money in California's prisons," published June 4 in the Times, with the one that appeared June 2 in The Californian, "Burglaries on the rise in Kern, Bakersfield," where residents are paying dearly, and daily, for the realignment.
The contrast is unbelievable, and it only scratches the surface. As a psychologist who regularly sees patients who have been released from Kern County Jail, I can tell you that the reports I'm hearing from parolees suggest that the jail is now overcrowded, and patients with severe mental disorders such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, who repeatedly submit requests to be seen, are not getting seen for days, even weeks, at a time. Some are in the midst of suicidal or grossly psychotic episodes. I can't believe that a reputable newspaper like the Times would allow such blatant misinformation to be disseminated, especially on such an important matter of concern to California residents.
Bruce L. Thiessen, Ph.D.
Bakersfield
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