‘Get Out Of Jail’ Free For U.S. Prisoners
Criminals Have It Too Good In America
Lawmakers from California to Kentucky are trying to save money with a drastic and potentially dangerous budget-cutting proposal: releasing tens of thousands of convicts from prison, including drug addicts, thieves and even violent criminals. Officials acknowledge that the idea carries risks, but they say they have no choice because of huge budget gaps brought on by the slumping economy.
At least eight states are considering freeing inmates or sending some convicts to rehabilitation programs instead of prison. If adopted, the early release programs could save an estimated $450 million in California and Kentucky alone. A Rhode Island proposal would allow inmates to deduct up to 12 days from their sentence for every month they follow rules and work in prison. Even some violent offenders would be eligible but not those serving life sentences.
In California, where lawmakers have taken steps to cut a $16 billion budget deficit in half by summer, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed saving $400 million by releasing more than 22,000 inmates who had less than 20 months remaining on their sentences. Violent and sex offenders would not be eligible.
So where exactly are the savings extracted from? Laying off prison guards and making it more difficult to send parole violators back to state prison would account for part of the savings. To curb spending, lawmakers have offered a bill to make about 7,000 drug offenders in prison eligible for parole. A second proposal would allow the parole board to release inmates convicted of selling marijuana and prescription drugs after serving just a quarter of their sentences. Currently, they must serve 85% of their terms before release.
Law enforcement officials and Republican lawmakers immediately criticized Schwarzenegger’s proposal, which would apply to car thieves, forgers, drunken drivers and some drug dealers. Some would never serve prison time because the standard sentence for those crimes is 20 months or less.
Gov. Steve Beshear has said Kentucky must review its policies after the state’s inmate population jumped 12% last year — the largest increase in the nation. Kentucky spends more than $18,600 to house one inmate for a year, or roughly $51 a day. In California, each inmate costs an average of $46,104 to incarcerate. I now favor death sentence for the extreme crimes. These are cheaper.
