SACRAMENTO, Calif. — One year after nearly 70% of California voters approved Proposition 36, the state’s effort to reduce repeat shoplifting and expand access to treatment, it is showing different outcomes from county to county.
Proposition 36 created a new felony for repeat petty theft offenders and directed courts to steer people with substance use disorders into treatment rather than jail. Early state numbers show the law remains far from achieving its full promise.
Data from the Judicial Council of California shows that in the first six months about 9,000 people were charged with Proposition 36’s new treatment-mandated felony. Roughly 1,300 agreed to enter treatment, and only about 25 have completed a program so far…