How Two Decades of Justice Reforms Reduced Racial Disparities in Prisons

California dramatically shrunk its prison population over two decades. How did those policies also reduce racial and ethnic disparities? Join the California Policy Lab (CPL) for a discussion of new research, supported by the Committee on Revision of the Penal Code, examining what happened to racial and ethnic disparities as California implemented some of the most significant criminal justice reforms in its history. The research looks across major policy changes, including 2011 Realignment, Proposition 36 (2012), Proposition 47 (2014), sentencing enhancement reforms, and changes to parole release decision-making. While many of these reforms were not primarily designed to reduce racial disparities, together they changed who enters prison, how long people remain incarcerated, and how people leave. CPL will share data about changes in racial and ethnic disparities as a result of these policies, including which disparities narrowed, and which persisted. A panel of experts will discuss what the findings mean for California’s criminal justice system and future directions for policymakers today. The California Policy Lab is a nonpartisan, applied research institute at the University of California that partners with government agencies to use data and research to address some of California’s most pressing public policy challenges.