May 25, 2011 | by Marc Mauer

The following op-ed originally appeared in USA Today.

The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on California prisons provides the state's policymakers with the opportunity to correct misguided sentencing policies and, in the process, to produce more effective public safety outcomes.

Since 1980, California has developed a bloated prison population for two key reasons. First, the state's punitive sentencing policies such as "three strikes and you're out" have produced such bizarre outcomes as an offender serving 25 years to life for stealing three golf clubs. And second, California leads the nation in sending offenders back to prison for violations of parole, many for technical reasons, such as failing a drug test, rather than a new crime.

The court's ruling will not result in the release of any offender who represents an immediate threat to public safety. But because 95 percent of inmates will eventually be released from prison, the key issue centers on use of resources. That is, should the state continue to spend $48,000 a year to imprison a low-level drug offender or provide treatment in the community at far less cost?

Public safety requires that we focus on how best to integrate offenders as they return home. This means assistance in securing work, housing and a positive peer group.

Likewise, state officials need to develop alternative measures to respond to offenders who violate the conditions of their parole. In recent years, the states of Kansas and Michigan successfully reduced the number of people sent back to prison by enhancing services and supervision in the community. Targeted drug testing and drug treatment, as well as expanded job placement services, can effectively limit prison populations and reduce recidivism.

Will some of the inmates released from California prisons re-offend upon their release? Of course. But that's already the case despite massive amounts of money spent on incarceration. The challenge now — and the opportunity — is to shift resources to produce better public safety outcomes for all.

The billions of tax dollars that can be saved by reducing prison populations can be better targeted for public safety by equipping released offenders with the tools and connections they need to lead productive lives in their communities.