The audit examines California’s conditional release program for sexually violent predators

An audit of the Department of State Hospitals’ sexually violent predator conditional release program found costs are rising and housing options remain limited.

The program should Safely transitioning people back to community living after a prison stay and inpatient treatment. The court will decide on your suitability for the program. The Department of State Hospitals (DSH) contracts with Liberty Healthcare to monitor participants and provide ongoing treatment.

The California State Auditor released a report Tuesday. It is said that people who participate in the conditional discharge program are less likely to relapse – 4% of program participants relapsed after being discharged from a state hospital, compared to 19% of non-participants.

Find places for them to live lasts an average of 17 months. Few property owners are willing to rent under the program. In San Diego County, opposition in the community also delayed the placements.

The report suggested that DSH consider state-run transitional housing.

“Washington, Minnesota, Kansas and Texas each use transitional group housing, which serves as an intermediate step between treatment in a state hospital and treatment in a community setting,” the report said.

In his Response to the auditDSH said people in transitional housing would still ultimately need community housing and that state-run transitional facilities would likely face resistance in communities.

Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones I applied for the exam last yearsaid sexually violent predators should never be released. If so, he said, he supports housing on state property rather than in city neighborhoods.

“The examples that have been used in the past are fire camps, state prisons, outside of the state prison, using either modular homes or RV trailers or something similar, where the state can comply with the sentencing and parole requirements, but” and at the same time for the Keep our communities safe,” he said.

Jones also has concerns about cost. The audit found that costs have risen as rents have risen, more people are participating in the program and Liberty Healthcare is increasing its rate. Annual costs to the state increased from $6.6 million to $11.5 million between 2018 and 2023. The average annual housing cost per participant increased from $39,000 to $55,000.

DSH has signed a contract with Liberty Healthcare since the program began in 2003. Since then, they have fielded at least four requests for information from other providers, but Liberty Healthcare was the only one to respond.

The audit found that DSH could attempt to contract with different providers for specific regions or services. Jones agreed.

“One provider can bid on the real estate part, another provider can bid on the treatment part, another provider can bid on the transportation part,” Jones said. “There is no reason why this has to be a single provider.”

DSH agreed Consider using multiple contracts. It was also agreed to conduct a review of Liberty Healthcare by March to ensure compliance with program guidelines, develop a more formal process to track recommendations made to Liberty Healthcare and provide additional guidance to local housing boards.