SACRAMENTO COUNTY, Calif. — Some community concerns arose after Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper's new inmate release directive.
Starting in January, the directive is to not release inmates between the hours of midnight and 6 a.m.
ABC10 spoke with the sheriff's office Thursday to find out why this is still happening.
They said bail can be posted 24 hours a day, so when it’s received, people are released. Also, when a person is processed for release, they legally have to be let go immediately. The jail has created a waiver for people to sign when they're released in the middle of the night. It allows them to spend the night until 6 a.m. to try and fix the issue.
Sgt. Amar Gandhi, spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, says they understand the safety concerns from the community.
“We hear voices from the community. We hear the concerns that are brought up by members not only from here downtown but other advocacy groups. We are always looking for way to improve business, and Sheriff Cooper took those concerns to heart and put them into action right away,” said Gandhi.
The Sacramento County Sheriff says, since the new policy, only about 12% to 14% of the inmate population in a month is released in the middle of night.
For example, if they release 2,000 people a month, that’s 240 people a month released between the hours of midnight to 6 a.m. Each person is also offered a bus pass no matter the time of day and given a 30-day prescription of their medication.
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