Governor Schwarzenegger signed a bill Tuesday allowing the state to parole comatose and physically incapacitated inmates. Under the measure, state prisons will be able to release comatose and physically incapacitated inmates on medical parole. According to the governor the bill requires a screening process to ensure public safety.  "The state currently wastes millions of dollars guarding physically incapacitated inmates in comas or in similar conditions that pose no threat to the safety of others," Schwarzenegger said.

According to a court-appointed federal healthcare receiver for the state prison system, thirty-two inmates are expected to be immediate candidates for medical parole.  Of those thirty-two, 21 are housed in nursing homes or hospitals. Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) said that eventually up to 1,000 inmates may be eligible for medical parole.  The measure was approved over the objection of some Republican lawmakers who argued that it might result in the release of too many inmates to cut costs. Schwarzenegger responded by stating that any release would have to be approved by the state Board of Parole Hearings, and offenders sentenced to death or life without parole would not qualify.

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