Voters rally for, against Prop 36 passage as Election Day nears

San Jose, Calif. - A group of two-dozen California 7-Eleven owners stood shoulder-to-shoulder, Tuesday, in south central San Jose as a show of solidarity for the passage of Prop 36.

"We have heard loud and clear that prop 36 is a step in the right direction," said Elizabeth Graham of the Calif. Fuels & Convenience Alliance.

Many of those assembled have been shaken, outraged and exhausted by the rising tide of retail crime. They have been bemoaning to politicians that their stores have become fertile ground for criminals.

"And it's not only the smash-and-grabs. It's the everyday theft that is happening because there's this notion of small crime is not accountable," said owner Jawad Ursani, who has two stores in Los Angeles.

Proponents of Prop 36 pointed to the passage of Prop 47 a decade ago as the real problem. It reduced certain low-level crimes such as burglary from felonies to misdemeanors.

"We need to bring balance back to the criminal justice system and ensure accountability for repeat offenders, particularly with a focus of getting repeat drug offenders into treatment," said Mayor Matt Mahan, (D) San Jose, who spoke to KTVU while attending a separate news conference. "We cannot continue to leave people trapped in a cycle of addiction, theft. In some cases, homelessness."

Opponents of Prop-36 have said it will worsen all the things it aims to cure, by crowding jails with people who are in need of help, not incarceration.

"The reason people are feeling unsafe in our communities, prop 36 doesn't address or attack any of that," said Brendon Woods, Alameda County chief public defender. Added state Sen. Dave Cortese, (D) San Jose, "Prop 36 is at least 20% flawed. I'm telling you 20% of the people caught up in this measure and this referendum's new sentencing are going to be dealt an injustice... This prop 36 doesn't add one more penny for mental health treatment or mental health beds."

Experts believe Prop 36 already has overwhelming support, and is likely to pass on Election Day.

"This close to the election, if it's over 60 percent it's very, very likely to pass. And all the public surveys we've seen, it's north of 60 percent," said Dr. Corey Cook, a political scientist & provost at St. Mary's College.

Governor Gavin Newsom, (D) Calif., has previously said he's against Prop 36, but will implement the will of the voters, should it pass.

Jesse Gary is a reporter based in the station's South Bay bureau. Follow him on the Instagram platform, @jessegontv and on Facebook, @JesseKTVU