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District attorney and public defender outline early data on Prop 36; few cases have reached treatment so far
Summary
Assistant District Attorney David Angel and Assistant Public Defender Sarah McCarthy told the committee that Prop 36 has generated modest case counts so far and that the law’s requirement of a guilty plea and shortages of treatment capacity are limiting immediate impact; staff will return with a fuller report in six months.
Assistant District Attorney David Angel and Assistant Public Defender Sarah McCarthy briefed the Public Safety & Justice Committee on early implementation of Proposition 36, the state ballot measure that created new treatment‑oriented charging options for some theft and drug offenses.
Angel said the county has had modest volumes so far. He reported approximately 51 petty‑theft filings under the statute and about 63 cases under Health and Safety Code section 11395 (the Prop 36 drug charge) through the first six months of operation; extrapolated roughly, that equates to about 120 such cases per year but Angel stressed the total is small relative to the county’s roughly 25,000 filings annually. Most Prop 36 drug filings in the county are not new arrests: Angel said 42 of the 63 cases he reviewed were charged alongside another,…
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