California eases prison crowding after years of trying

It is not yet clear whether the inmate count of 113,463 released Thursday, about 300 below the cap set by a panel of three federal judges, represents a permanent thinning of the prison population or is just a temporary reprieve for the state, which for years fought orders to bring the numbers down. "It's an important milestone," said Michael Bien, a lead attorney in lawsuits aimed at forcing the state to reduce crowding that have gone all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. "But it doesn't mean everything is fixed." The administration of Democratic Governor Jerry Brown did not immediately comment on the population change, which was released as part of the state's regular weekly inmate count released Thursday. Bien said the biggest factor in the population reduction was the implementation of a new law passed by voters last year that reclassified some crimes as misdemeanors that had previously been felonies.



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