{"id":259595,"date":"2026-04-09T16:34:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T16:34:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/259595\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T16:34:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T16:34:11","slug":"california-proposes-expanding-prison-sports-programs-statewide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/259595\/","title":{"rendered":"California Proposes Expanding Prison Sports Programs Statewide"},"content":{"rendered":"

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a<\/a><\/p>\n

\"AA cubist interpretation of the camaraderie and competitive spirit found in a prison sports program, a key component of California’s efforts to reform its criminal justice system.Today in Sacramento<\/p>\n

California lawmakers have proposed a bill called the Second Chance Sports Act that would formally recognize organized sports as a form of rehabilitation in state prisons. The bill, which has bipartisan support, would create sports teams like the San Quentin Giants in prisons across the state, funded in part by outside donations and coordinated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The goal is to use sports as a tool to promote rehabilitation and successful reintegration of incarcerated individuals back into their communities.<\/p>\n

Why it matters<\/p>\n

This proposed legislation is part of a broader effort by California to transform its penal system with more progressive policies, using programs like sports, arts, media, and education to help incarcerated individuals prepare for life after prison. If passed, the bill could serve as a model for other states looking to implement similar rehabilitation-focused initiatives.<\/p>\n

The details<\/p>\n

The bill was proposed by Democratic lawmaker Jesse Gabriel after he read a news story about the San Quentin Giants, a prison baseball team. Gabriel was surprised to learn there was no formal policy around sports programs in California prisons, so he drafted the Second Chance Sports Act to address that. The bill would open the door for additional funding and resources for organized sports in prisons, and several professional sports teams have expressed interest in helping with the initiative.<\/p>\n

Last summer, reporter Eli Tan wrote a story about the San Quentin Giants baseball team.Last month, California lawmaker Jesse Gabriel proposed the Second Chance Sports Act.On Tuesday, the bill passed through its first committee in the State Assembly uncontested.<\/p>\n

The players<\/p>\n

Eli Tan<\/p>\n

A reporter who covered the San Quentin Giants baseball team and wrote a story that inspired the proposed legislation.<\/p>\n

Jesse Gabriel<\/p>\n

A Democratic lawmaker in California who proposed the Second Chance Sports Act after reading Tan’s story about the San Quentin Giants.<\/p>\n

Branden Terrell<\/p>\n

A former shortstop on the San Quentin Giants who has lobbied for such legislation since 2019 and now runs a rehabilitation clinic in Butte County.<\/p>\n

Gavin Newsom<\/p>\n

The Governor of California who has championed efforts to transform the state’s penal system with more progressive policies, making San Quentin a model for arts, media, education, and sports programs.<\/p>\n

California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation<\/p>\n

The state agency that would coordinate the sports teams in prisons across California under the proposed legislation.<\/p>\n

Got photos? Submit your photos here. \u203a<\/a>
\n What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, it’s a really powerful tool to promote rehabilitation, but it’s also a way to successfully reintegrate these folks back into the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jesse Gabriel, California Lawmaker<\/p>\n

\u201cYou’re creating an alumni network of not just former players, but all the people that come in from the outside to play. They’re business owners, they’re managers, they’re supervisors. Those are the relationships that create opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Branden Terrell, Former San Quentin Giants Shortstop<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next<\/p>\n

The Second Chance Sports Act will now move on to additional committees in the California State Assembly before potentially being voted on by the full legislature.<\/p>\n

The takeaway<\/p>\n

This proposed legislation in California represents a promising model for using organized sports as a tool for rehabilitation and successful reintegration of incarcerated individuals back into their communities. If passed, it could inspire similar initiatives in other states looking to transform their criminal justice systems with more progressive, rehabilitation-focused policies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a A cubist interpretation of the camaraderie and competitive spirit found…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":259596,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[121,123,122],"class_list":["post-259595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259595","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=259595"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/259595\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/259596"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=259595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=259595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=259595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}