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Slava Voynov began serving sentence July 7 at 'pay-to-stay' facility

Slava Voynov began serving sentence July 7 at 'pay-to-stay' facility

Slava Voynov was sentenced to 90-days in jail as a part of the no contest plea in his domestic violence case. First reported by Nathan Fenno of the LA Times, Voynov began serving his time on July 7 at the Seal Beach Detention Center.

As a part of his plea agreement, Voynov was allowed to select the location of where he would be staying. He opted for a pay-for-stay facility; a place that’s more Wizard of Oz than Oz the TV show. Although his current contract has been suspended by the NHL and the Kings, it’s a safe assumption to say Voynov has the financial means to afford the $100-per-day fee.

With good behavior, Voynov will be out of the facility after 45 days, and out $4,500.

Does it feel like he got off light in serving his sentence? To most, it probably does.

By no means am I downplaying his actions. What he did was abhorrent, but it's the nature of the state he and I live in. California prisons are overpopulated by 144-percent. The Supreme Court has given the state until February 2016 to decrease the overpopulation to 137.5-percent.

When I ran my annoyance of the inequities of the pay-to-system for such a terrible crime by a California police officer colleague of mine, he responded with some perspective:

"... the pay-to-stay facilities are a way to keep serious offenders separate from less violent criminals. But it's also a way for municipalities to generate profit that can be applied to a city's general fund. It may appear to be unfair, but if you've ever taken a tour of a larger facility you'll see that most offenders that make up the general population can be unpredictable in their behavior. And in the end, the PTS inmates are still relinquishing their freedom."

Relinquishing of his freedom is what is expected of him from justice system and he's doing just that.

At the time of publication, the NHL had not responded with comment as to the the status of their investigation. The Kings will no longer comment on the issue.

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Jen Neale is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter!

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