The union representing Los Angeles police is predicting certain mayhem for the city if a U.S. Supreme Court-ordered release of about 33,000 California prisoners goes through and, at the same time, funding and staffing for the LAPD is reduced.

In the shadow a looming, $300 million-plus deficit in the city and proposed cuts for the LAPD, the court ruling “sets up a perfect storm for a wave of crime to overtake recent gains in public safety,” according to a Los Angeles Police Protective League statement.

The union wants Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the City Council to reconsider proposed cuts in the shadow of the decision.

The LAPPL notes that:

L.A. County is the largest [county] in the state, accounting for about a third of the entire state prison population … [and] we can assume more inmates will return here than to any other county in the state.

The decision would cut down California's estimated 140,000 inmate population significantly but still keep prisons well above capacity.

The Supreme Court majority argued that the overcrowding amounted to cruel and unusual punishment. The state has two years to reduce the number of inmates by 37,000.

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