California’s jail population will rise thanks to Prop. 36. So will inmate deaths, advocates say

Michele Deitch, director of the Prison and Jail Innovation Lab at the University of Texas at Austin, said it’s likely, if not a certainty, that more people will die in jails as jail populations grow. And, she said, there will be cumulative effects to counties as the expenses pile up from additional inmates. 

“Having more people means a more overcrowded situation, which means that the dynamics inside change,” Deitch said. “It could lead to more deaths. And the counties are going to very quickly realize how expensive it is to keep that number of people in jail. They’re going to have to develop strategies like (pre-trial diversion programs) to keep overcrowding down.”