BLOGS BY BOB

Could our faltering economy get some relief if we revamp judicial sentencing guidelines?

As we tighten our economic belts, states are looking at prisons as places in which money can be saved.  California for example is going to release thousands of non-violent offenders in order to diminish the cost of incarceration which runs into billions of dollars nationwide.

A 2008 New York Times article puts the problem in perspective.  http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/archives/2008/02/1_in_100_us_adu.html.  The Times quotes the Pew Center on the States as saying one in one hundred American adults is in jail — that’s well over two million people behind bars and some of them may not belong there.  On average, states spend almost 7 percent of their budgets on corrections, trailing only healthcare, education and transportation. And – the National Association of State Budgeting Officers says that costs the nation’s taxpayers $44 Billion a year. 

The question we have to ask ourselves is this, “Do all these people belong in jail?  Does the judicial system have enough latitude to consider broader forms of sentencing?”  For example, there are thousands of DWI first offenders in jail who might more appropriately be in chemical dependency treatment centers (where most of the cost is picked up by insurance). 

Today’s New York Times is reporting that, “The state Assembly has announced that it will pass legislation to repeal much of what remains of the state’s 1970s-era drug laws. (Albany Takes Step to Repeal Rockefeller Drug Laws http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/05/nyregion/05rockefeller.html?hp by Jeremy W. Peters)

“Skip to next paragraphThe proposal would be the first pivotal step in a push to dismantle the laws that tied judges’ hands and imposed mandatory prison terms for many nonviolent drug offenses.  The Assembly’s proposal restores judges’ discretion in sentencing in many lower-level drug possession crimes. Judges would be able to send many offenders to treatment programs instead of prison without receiving consent from prosecutors. In addition, the measure would permit about 2,000 prisoners to apply to have their sentences reconsidered.”

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The Times story goes on to say, “Before any three-way compromise is reached, several sticking points need to be resolved. Those issues include whether drug offenders who do not complete treatment would be sent to prison and whether offenders would first need to be certified as addicted before they could enter a treatment program.

The State Legislature has already eliminated the stiffest provisions of the Rockefeller laws, doing away in 2004 with life sentences for drug crimes and reducing other penalties for the most serious offenses. But supporters of the Assembly plan believe that plan is an opportunity to finish what began in 2004.”

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So one of my questions is, “By revamping sentencing can we accomplish two goals?  1) To alleviate prison overcrowding and therefore diminish the cost and 2) offer help (like treatment which works.  I personally can attest to that) to those who need it rather than incarceration.

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What do you think?  Have a comment?    Write it in the space provided or email me at bob@baronson.org.   

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