NORCO, Calif. — The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has announced it will permanently shutter the California Rehabilitation Center in Norco by fall 2026, citing a historic drop in the state’s prison population. The closure, long demanded by criminal justice reform advocates, marks the fourth state-owned prison to shut down in four years.
Advocates say the closure is the direct result of years of grassroots organizing aimed at exposing the facility’s deteriorating conditions and shifting public policy away from incarceration and toward community investment.
“Five years ago, our community of people most impacted by incarceration organized a list of prisons to prioritize for closure, and CRC was at the top of that list,” said Amber-Rose Howard, executive director of Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB), a statewide coalition of more than 100 organizations working to reduce the state’s reliance on incarceration. “In moments like this, when community organizing and administrative change align, we celebrate.”…