San Diego County’s Work Furlough program lets a person serving local custody time keep working. Participants live at a community-based custodial facility, check out to go to work, and return each day when the workday ends. Placement is not automatic: the Probation Department’s Work Furlough Oversight unit reviews each case individually, felony cases are screened through the defense attorney, and the sentencing judge can recommend work furlough or rule it out.

Who runs it and where

The Work Furlough (WF) and Residential Re-Entry Center (RRC) facility “is operated by CoreCivic under contract with the County of San Diego” and is located in the City of San Diego. The county Probation Department’s page describes WF and RRC as sentencing alternatives that let inmates “maintain or search for employment while serving a custodial commitment.” Work Furlough participants go to their job and must return to the facility each day as soon as the workday ends; most must use public transportation, though some are approved to drive. RRC participants must be on formal probation “with at least 30 days of actual custody time” and generally have 90 days to find full-time work while attending programming and job search.

California’s work furlough statute, Penal Code section 1208 (the Cobey Work Furlough Law), lets the county’s work furlough administrator run the facility or, with the board of supervisors’ approval, “administer the work furlough facility pursuant to written contracts with appropriate public or private agencies or private entities.”

The employment rules

Each case is reviewed individually, and people who “pose a danger to the community or do not meet employment standards will not be accepted.” The county’s employment conditions are:

  • Paid work of at least 35 hours a week “in an occupation that allows on-site job checks and telephone checks.”
  • A job not directly related to the offense, and not involving the use of weapons.
  • No access to another person’s personal information; the county’s examples include accepting personal checks and access to Social Security numbers or banking information.
  • Legal authorization to work in the United States, with the job located in San Diego County.
  • No more than 72 work hours a week, including travel time. Every hour checked out must be actual work time, with no down time between work hours (the county’s examples are cab, shuttle, and delivery drivers), paid at least the prevailing minimum wage for each hour, including in commission jobs.
  • For self-employment, proof such as a business license and 1099s, an office space, and a landline; a garage workspace must be detached from the home, with its own landline and bathroom.

The personal-information rule comes from Penal Code section 4017.1, which bars people assigned to work furlough from jobs that give access to private individuals’ personal information. The statute lets them look at or hold a driver’s license or credit card only as long as an immediate transaction requires, and never in a job where a card or license is deposited as security. The county’s page does not say how it applies that narrow exception.

What the screening looks at

Screening covers the offense and criminal history, the probation officer’s sentencing recommendation or the plea agreement, employment, drug and alcohol history, mental health, lawful presence in the United States, and family financial support. Anyone facing a local custody commitment may be a candidate, but the county lists factors that “may result in a denial”:

  • Sale or transportation of large amounts of drugs in the current offense, or a recent history of serious drug involvement or addiction.
  • A history of assaultive or violent behavior.
  • A history of weapon use.
  • A history of serious mental illness.
  • Offenses causing the loss of substantial amounts of money.
  • Sex offenses, which call for “closer scrutiny” because of the risk the county associates with them.

How the application works

In felony cases, the defense attorney, not the defendant, must complete the county’s electronic Work Furlough Screening Form and “submit it via e-mail to psg.workfurlough@sdcounty.ca.gov.” Cases are screened only with attorneys and probation officers, “the screening officer will respond within 24 business hours of submission,” and the Probation Department “has the final authority over the placement” of participants.

The sentencing judge matters too. Under Penal Code section 1208(i), a court may recommend or refer a person for work furlough, and that recommendation “shall be given great weight in the determination of acceptance or denial.” The same statute lets the court block it: the administrator can approve work furlough “unless the court at the time of sentencing or committing has ordered that the person not be granted work furloughs.”

Section 1208 also sets the terms once someone is placed. The administrator may collect a participant’s earnings and use them for board and personal expenses, program costs, and support of dependents, with any balance paid at discharge. Participants remain eligible for custody credits under Penal Code sections 4018 and 4019. Violating program conditions can lead to an order to serve the rest of the sentence in actual confinement, and willfully failing to return on time is punishable under Penal Code section 4532.

Practical next steps

  • Before sentencing, ask your lawyer about requesting a work furlough recommendation from the judge, since the statute gives it great weight.
  • Gather accurate proof of employment, such as pay stubs, or a business license and 1099s if you are self-employed, and check the job against each condition above.
  • Go over the denial factors honestly with your lawyer before counting on approval.
  • In a felony case, confirm your lawyer has submitted the screening form, and follow up if 24 business hours pass without a response.

The Law Offices of David S. Chesley can assess whether a San Diego County case is a realistic work furlough candidate and help prepare the information Probation screens; for more, see the firm’s San Diego page. Call (800) 755-5174.