SACRAMENTO - Assembly Republican Leader Connie Conway, of Tulare, today issued the following statement in response to today's narrow 5-4 Supreme Court ruling upholding the order of a three-judge federal panel to impose a population cap on California prisons:

"The Supreme Court today chose to ignore the devastating impact that a population cap would have on our communities and instead paved the way for the early release of tens of thousands of dangerous criminals.  This is an example of legislating from the bench at its worst.  As a result of this reckless and irresponsible decision, innocent Californians could be at serious risk of becoming victims of crime.

"This weekend's Fresno Bee featured a column about the Fresno County Sheriff already having to 'catch and release' car thieves because there is no room in local jails to house them.  This is a preview of what the entire state of California will experience at a much larger scale once the federal population cap is in place.

"Despite today's ruling, the Legislature will play a critical role in determining how inmates are released to comply with the Court's order.  Assembly Republicans will be fully engaged throughout the process, and will work to ensure that dangerous criminals serve the maximum time of their sentence behind bars where they belong.  We will fight hard to defend the safety of California families."