The crux of the argument, reports Fox 5 San Diego, lies in the 27,000+ illegal immigrant inmates being detained in California prisons.  Jones believes a more cost-effective solution would be to construct facilities in Mexico and house them there, he said.

According to a recent report by the Public Policy Institute of California, the state’s prisons are operating at 175% of the inmate capacity they were designed to hold.  That overcrowding, say law enforcement officials, has been a driving force behind a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court which requires California to release in excess of 30,000 non-violent low-level inmates.

The next steps, said the assemblyman, is to find out if the plan is plausible and if so, whether if it would be permitted under state law.

This new strategy will use data analysis in addition to other intelligence in order to focus on incidents and offenders that harm the community most. The goal of this new crime-fighting plan is to know where probationers and parolees reside in each patrol beat. With this information, officers will be able to solve crimes sooner.

“This way we can target a particular crime in a particular area of San Diego County and really have an impact and drive down some crime rates in high-crime areas,” said Gore.

The department’s move toward a more intelligence-led policing strategy is an important move. Commanders have already begun to prepare assignments for new deputies in stations across the county’s unincorporated areas to help keep up with the ever-growing population.

The department has already seen some success with the border-crime suppression team which shows how effective and flexible a targeted approach can be.

Referring to San Diego Sheriff’s Deparment Sub-Stations, Commander Mike Barletta said, “We could have put two deputies each in Fallbrook, Valley Center, Alpine and 4-S Ranch and called them community-oriented policing deputies. And I am sure those captains would be pleased to have any extra staff, But this helps move us into the 21st century in terms of policing. I think we can become a county at the forefront of something here.”

With this new strategy, deputies will continue to patrol their beats. But if there is a surge in criminal activity in other areas, commanders could deploy teams to help address the situation.

The county’s crime analysis manager, Dr. Noah Fritz said, “It’s predicting and forecasting, looking at locations that are more prone to crime and targeting serious and prolific offenders.” The new strategy is essentially placing sheriff’s deputies where they are needed at times when they are needed most.

So far this year, San Diego has seen a drop in crime, but it has also seen a marked increase in gang violence as well. In all of 2010, there were a total of four gang-related homicides. As of right now, there have been six in the city.

Police Chief William Lansdowne stated, “We’re seeing a spike in crime right now, and it has to do with gang violence in the city of San Diego, and it has to do with gang violence in the southeast area of San Diego.”

In April, nine people were shot or killed in southeastern San Diego. It appears that recent shootings are in retaliation for previous ones. Community members and leaders held a rally Thursday, “Peace in Southeast,” hoping to draw attention to the growing problem centered around the San Diego Police Department Southeast Division.

Former gang member, Stacy Butler, took part in the rally in support of peace. “Why do we live in misery?” Butler asked. He was sentenced to 30 years to life for the 1988 shooting death of SDPD officer Jerry Hartless, but released in 2000. “I faced the death penalty. I try to tell kids to go another route.”

The first three months of this year, residents saw a decrease in gang crimes when compared to the same time last year. The number of crimes committed by gang members dropped 5.2%, according to Department data. There has also been an 11.4% decrease in violent crimes, such as murder and rape, compared to last year’s numbers. Property crimes have also gone down by 13.8%, and domestic violence dropped 12%.

The crime rates in San Diego have been on a decline since 1990, a trend that has also been reflecting across the country.

It is alleged that Kenniston drove a Ford Crown Victoria, painted black and white and equipped with a siren and emergency lights, and conducted a traffic stop on February 23 around 2 p.m. near East Orange Avenue and Max Road.

“Kenniston confronted the female about ‘running a red light and almost running into him.’ Kenniston drove off when a CVPD uniformed patrol unit pulled into the area,” said Capt. Gary Ficacci.

The driver believed that Kenniston was a real police officer.

Another incident occurred on March 9 at 9 am, when Kenniston allegedly took his girlfriend’s daughter to school at an elementary school in Chula Vista while driving the same Crown Victoria.

“He used his emergency lights and PA system to confront another female who was parked near an alleged red/yellow zone,” said Capt. Ficacci. “When the female ignored him, he blocked her car and demanded her license, registration, and insurance.”

The woman believed Kenniston was an off-duty police officer and handed the documents over to him.

It is alleged that Kenniston conducted a third traffic stop while using his emergency lights and siren on Interstate 805 while his girlfriend’s daughter was still in the car before dropping her off at school.

He was arrested for two felony counts of false imprisonment, two misdemeanor counts of impersonating a peace officer and a single count of felony child endangerment. Kenniston’s extensive criminal record stretches all the way back to 1989. He has been in and out of jail on charges for DUI, burglary and car theft, according to court papers.

While we commented on crime rates, bail bonds and the economy in April 2009, for many skeptics and believers alike, one question remains…Why?

One interesting answer is given by San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne who indicated that the crime rates had gone down due to good police enforcement.

Lansdowne further stated, “The concept of community-oriented policing, where the community works very, very closely with police departments, provides us with information, testifies for us in court, and calls us quickly using technology – cell phones – I think has made just a tremendous impact.”

He also added that the crime rate drop is part of a larger trend. “In 1991, we had 167 homicides in the City of San Diego. This year to date we’re at 23 homicides.”

Another point of view given by Paul Sutton, a professor of criminal justice at San Diego State, explains that police jump to take the praise from falling crime rates but when those rates soar back up, they quickly step away and place the blame on society. Generally, the criminal justice system causes very few changes towards the crime rate.

Sutton said, “Significant changes in any kind of crime pattern are the result of macro changes in the population, in the age of distribution of the population.”

For San Diego, with a rise in the late-teen population and the decrease of people in their 20’s, it’s difficult to properly figure who’s committing what crimes according to age to explain the drop for this year.

She’s also suspected of holding up two more banks in Poway which she’s not officially been charged for, yet. Pennock was arrested in Temecula on November 6th, just minutes after a woman robbied Temecula Chase Bank. She was later stopped in a van that witnesses identified at the crime scene.

Guilty or not, Pennock is out of jail on a $25,000 bail. Her lawyer, declined to comment after she was ordered back to court on December 17th.  Officials have some further investigations to do. The FBI is now on the case along with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

To top it all off, Roxanne Pennock lives in Poway. What a coincidence that Riverside authorities uncovered evidence from the robbery of the Chase bank in, you got it… her hometown, Poway. The van was recovered with evidence which links Ms. Pennock to the downright dastardly deeds.

Further, she lives only minutes from a San Diego National Bank on Poway Road which was robbed at semi-automatic gunpoint by a person wearing a clown mask and hooded sweat shirt.  A second robbery took place at a U.S. Bank in Poway where it was robbed by a person “matching the description of the previous suspect.” Sounds suspicious all right. I wonder if she ever saw “Mad Money…” the movie, that is.

Let me back up: When people hear that I’m a bail bondsman, they always seem to think, “you must have a lot of good stories.” Truth be told, we don’t. Mostly, we bail out regular people. Day in and day out, bail is like most other jobs – except, of course, that you do it 24 x 7 x 365.

Days like yesterday, where we get an interesting case, are pretty rare. Got a call this for a bail bond out of Los Colinas Jail, San Diego’s womens jail on an out of state warrant on a woman – pretty regular so far.

Now, for the rest of the story… Husband put together a birthday cruise for wife and their two small children – nice. They get to the ship (where, of course, the couple’s passport’s are scanned upon entry). They settle in, have a nice meal while waiting for the ship to set sail. Next thing you know, there’s a knock at the door. The Border Patrol is standing there asking questions, puts the wife in handcuffs and she’s headed to jail. Bummer of a vacation buster!

Unfortunately for the family, they thought an attorney had taken care of the wife’s situation. After a call to us to arrange bail, the man and the two children returned home. We bailed the wife out and she was able to make a flight home late in the day.

Moral of the story: security checks while traveling net more than terrorists. So, if you have an outstanding warrant, be prepared to head back home. Even better, arrange with a bondsman to get it taken care of before you set sail.

Santee also filed a lawsuit last year against the county involving a $100 million state grant to expand the Las Colinas jail, which it lost. Santee currently is appealing this lawsuit. Santee sights differences in the city since Las Colinas was first built as well as environmental impact as reasons for County Supervisors to look elsewhere for a new women’s jail.  just doesn’t want a jail or even a new jail in their area. They might have some help from Ryan Companies US who is also filing a lawsuit against the jail project. Ryan Companies has a 1.9 million square foot project going on in Santee and fears loss of property value if the Las Colinas jail is expanded.

The security guard for the San Diego Trolley system was shot on July 18, at the La Mesa trolley station. Earlier in the week, on the 15th of July, the same guard was attacked where his gun and ammunition was stolen. This attack happened at the Encanto trolley station.  Loftis is allegedly responsible for both incidents.

To halt the potential spread of Swine Flu at an Otay Mesa Jail in San Diego, immigrant inmates are being quarantined. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials report that while these inmates wait for their day in court, two more cases of the Swine Flu were confirmed.  Those two cases have since recovered and have been returned to the general population.

The quarantine is for observation. Those scheduled for an upcoming court hearing have to wait. “Detainees under quarantine are removed from the active calendar,” states Elaine Komis, spokeswoman for the Executive Office for Immigration Review.

This subject sparks heated discussion among some of the attorneys who represent these detainees. The immigrants being held are not being allowed to go to court.  Even for those who have not fallen ill.

These are individuals waiting for immigration hearings. Attorney Sean Riordan states “when you’re talking about someone who has been in detention for some time, it is a devastating thing for a client to hear that you are going to be stuck in what amounts to a prison for other weeks or months.”

The quarantine is generally a period of a week. Even when inmates are released and allowed to go to immigration court, court officials are requiring written confirmation from ICE that the client has been cleared. Eventually, inmates are scheduled for available hearing dates when the court receives notice all quarantines are lifted.