Los Angeles (LA) County is home to thelargest jail system in the world, operated by the LA County Sheriff’s Department(LASD). The county is also the center of one of the most acute homelessness problems in the United States. According to the 2019 Pointin-Time Count (Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, 2019), there are nearly 59,000 people experiencing homelessness within LA County. On any given night, the LA County jail houses more than 16,000 inmates, and recent estimates suggest that nearly one-half of all inmates have at least one chronic disease, about two-thirds have a substance use disorder, and about one-fourth have serious mental illness (Gorman, 2018; Hamai, 2015). Because of the lack of affordable housing and social services in the community, LA County jail has seen an increase in the number of individuals with complex clinical needs.
Los Angeles County Office of Diversion and Reentry’s Supportive Housing Program A Study of Participants’ Housing Stability and New Felony Convictions
RAND Corporation
Year: 2019