Prison Reform

I heard on the radio that Florida is seeking lower costs for their prisons. They are looking to Texas for guidance. Here is some of what Texas has done, not out of goodwill, but to lower the cost of prison populations.

Non violent offenders are on parole, not incarcerated.
Offenders who can benefit from drug and substance abuse counseling receive it.
There's a careful analysis of each prisoner's potential needs:
Medical care is provided.
Counseling is provided for the purpose of preparing a prisoner for the world of work.
Basic training and education are provided.

Florida does not parole new offenders. They just keep building more prisons.

There were more; but I don't remember them all. I could probably Google Texas prison reforms save money. These were some of the suggestions made on an earlier thread for the purpose of reducing prison populations and providing a more humane and less barbaric system of justice. It was interesting to hear that some states (especially Texas!) are looking to save money by instituting reforms that also happen to be humane.

I found the article referenced on the radio news:

Posted on Tuesday, 01.25.11

FLORIDA PRISONS

Sentence reform could save state money

A Texas lawmaker came to Tallahassee to give
lawmakers advice about prison reform -- help those with addictions stay
out of prison.

BY JANET ZINK

Herald/Times Tallahassee Bureau

TALLAHASSEE --
Both Gov. Rick Scott and legislative leaders have pledged to offset the state's nearly $4 billion budget shortfall with cuts to the prison system. With that in mind, Florida lawmakers heard testimony Monday from Texas state Rep. Jerry Madden, R-Plano, who sponsored prison reform legislation in his home state. The overriding message: Save money by keeping people out of prison with programs that address drug addiction, alcoholism and mental illness.

Madden said prisoners can largely be divided into three categories: Those who will never return, those who are guaranteed to return, and those who won't return if they are enrolled in the right programs. It's the third category that gives you the most bang for your buck, he said, so it's worth it to invest in drug and alcohol treatment programs. ``This is being tough on crime. It's tougher for a drug guy to take drug treatment than to spend a year and a day in jail,'' Madden said. ``If someone's a drug addict, break their habit.'' The goal, he said, is to keep people out of prison and stop using taxpayer money to provide room, board and health care to people who are only a danger to society because they have substance abuse or mental health problems. ``If he's locked up in your prisons for that, why don't you treat him? Particularly if he's one of those guys that may or may not come back,'' Madden said. ``Don't spend one cent on a person who's always coming back, or the person who's never coming back.''

Madden also suggested giving judges more leeway in sentencing guidelines, creating school programs to stop high-risk children from becoming criminals, and changing penalties so that minor parole violations and possession of small amounts of drugs don't result in extensive time behind bars. Madden was speaking at a joint meeting of the Senate criminal justice committee and subcommittee on criminal and civil justice appropriations. Several committee members, including Sen. Greg Evers, R-Baker, and Sen. Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, asked if such measures prompt criticism of being soft on crime. And Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, said Florida lawmakers have considered some of Madden's suggestions in the past, but ``it's politically difficult to do.'' Madden said that shouldn't be the case. ``If you do things that affect the low-risk and nonviolent offenders, your public supports those kinds of reforms,'' he said, adding that both conservative and liberal groups will respond to the cost-cutting argument. Some estimates show Texas prison reforms have saved the state $2 billion, he said. After the meeting, Evers said that if it is to cut the prison budget, Florida may need to revisit some sentencing rules, including one that requires offenders to serve 85 percent of their sentences. That was also a recommendation made by a Scott transition team on prison reform.

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/01/25/2032271/sentence-reform-could-save-state.html#ixzz1C5cBWyzb

Florida and Texas could save money if they would stop executing people.

We don't have a justice system.
We have a legal system.
There may be laws. They may be enforced. But there isn't always fairness.

There are two sides of the bars. And it isn't perfect, but it is sure better than the gallows of the dark ages.

It would help if they would stop putting 20 year old boys in prison for dating 17 year old girls. These young men end up with the 'title' of sex offender for the rest of their lives because somebody's little 'princess' (who hasn't been a virgin since she was 15, had sex with an 'adult' while she was a 'child') was "raped". Sometimes because of sticking to the letter of the law, instead of the spirit, people who have 'technically' committed a crime ... but who are not criminals ... get stuck behind for bars for years. A waste of life and ... yes, money. And you would be amazed at how often this 'law' is enforced. I read of a woman who allowed her 'adult' 21 year old son and his 17 year old 'child' girlfriend and their baby to live in her home. They planned to marry when the girl turned 18 in a couple of months and the woman just wanted to help the couple. SHE WAS ARRESTED for allowing it.

And I think the Innocence Projects is a great organization. There are people who are wrongly incarcerated, who should be free and compensated for the time they spend wrongly behind bars.

ON THE OTHER HAND, my son is a corrections officer (and my uncle is in law enforcement) and some of these guys behind bars belong there. It is sad, but the minds of some people ... are just dangerous and twisted. My kid has asked the family to NOT talk about his job in public places. You never know who out there is an ex-con and may HATE C.Os. He has encountered ex-inmates who know him in public. It can be scary for a corrections officer ... or judge, lawyer, and any law enforcement official ... that an ex-con could hold a grudge against. I knew a lawyer whose office was broken into more than once because of these kind of so called humans.

In high school I dated a very sweet guy and was his date at his senior prom. About 12 years ago I found out that he'd become a corrections officer in Texas. He was killed by an inmate while at work. Stabbed. Because the inmate got angry that my former boyfriend did not allow him to take food out into the yard!!! He killed this man a week before Christmas. He left behind a wife and three kids.

Rehab does often work.
But not all humans are fixable.

Like I said, the system has improved. But there is no "justice for all" ... there are just too many variables, interpretations, and corruption in the legal system.
The prison systems can only do so much with the budgets they have and the politics involved in the state management of the system.

Its nice to wish for more ideal solutions ... but then reality kind of spoils it.