Inmates to Plant Trees in Lakeside Under Job Training Program

SAN DIEGO COUNTY -- A job training program at the East Mesa Detention and Re‐entry Facility is taking root at San Diego County parks. Trees and plants that were cultivated and grown at the jail's greenhouse will be planted at five parks across the county this month, including the morning of Nov. 3 at El Monte County Park.

The civics program is a partnership between the Sheriff's Department and County Parks and Recreation.
Inmate workers perform tasks such as landscaping, cleaning county parks, trails, canals or ditches, clearing
vegetation, creating fire buffer zones, as well as trimming and cutting hazardous trees.

The program started in July 2014 to help inmates develop skills and work habits needed to secure honest
employment after their release. Gardening can be therapeutic and gives inmates a sense of purpose while
serving time behind bars. The work they do for County Parks also helps inmates build healthier connections
with the community.

To be eligible for the program, inmates must be housed at the East Mesa Jail and have six months or less left
in their sentences. They can't be convicted of violent or sexual crimes. While outside, a deputy is on site and
watches the inmates at all times. An instructor from Grossmont‐Cuyamaca Community College teaches
inmates basic horticultural and landscaping skills. Inmates graduate with a certificate of participation.

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