37th Assembly District candidate Ferial Masry, a vocal critic of the proposed prison hospital in Camarillo, urged her supporters at the grand opening of the Camarillo Democratic Club's headquarters on Saturday to get involved in the fight to keep this facility out of our community.

"I see this as an issue for everyone living along the Highway 101 corridor in Ventura County," she said, speaking to the crowd of 80 supporters along with 19th State Senate District candidate Hannah-Beth Jackson.

Federal Receiver J. Clark Kelso is empowered to build seven hospitals for 1,500 prison patients each across California. Apparently the Ventura County Youth Facility in Camarillo is the third location on his list. He wants $8 billion to build these facilities and can take it from the state coffers because he has the power of the U.S. court to make Sacramento comply. He has asked the legislature to approve lease revenue bonds for the building. Kelso expects to have a hearing in Sacramento on Sept. 22.

Masry cited three reasons why she opposes this project:

1. The staffing for such a large hospital would draw away scarce medical staff from other health facilities in the county, many of which already are understaffed. Thus it could decrease the quality of health care for all of Ventura County.
2. The hospital would place additional demands on local law enforcement agencies that are already understaffed, especially when prison patients would have to be transported to and from other medical facilities in the county for special treatment.  
3. The additional traffic burden on Highway 101 and local surface roads puts a strain on just completed improvements and infrastructure adding further congestion to our roads.

All of this is in the face of California's current budget shortfall and the prolonged standoff to get a budget passed in Sacramento.  

"My opponent Audra Strickland's spokesperson mentioned that the Assemblywoman had two possible pieces of legislation that would help Camarillo fight this imposition on their community,"  Masry said. "We all wonder what exact legislation this was in reference to?"

Nothing has been heard about this supposed legislation to date. Many of us have been reading the Ventura County Star looking for news of these bills.  Like Masry, I question the effectiveness of any legislation at this point while the budget battle continues. It seems that local opposition from the county and city may have the most impression on federal receiver Kelso.

I agree with Masry that a wider lens is necessary to see how California has arrived at the inhumane treatment of prisoners which prompted the prison expansion order. The growth in prisons and older prisoners has skyrocketed since the 1990s as tougher sentencing laws brought many longer sentences for crimes and literally outstripped the system's ability to house, treat, rehabilitate and care for prisoners.  

Masry acknowledges the seriousness of our current problem, but she points to addressing issues of education and opportunity for young people in the future that will lead to decent paying jobs. As a teacher, she knows that we must balance these problems with an eye to the future of our children.

At the same time, we must speak out about the safety and environmental disaster such a huge prison hospital will bring to the community.