New York Times Editorial
Published: March 29, 2009
America’s criminal justice system needs repair. Prisons are overcrowded, sentencing policies are uneven and often unfair, ex-convicts are poorly integrated into society, and the growing problem of gang violence has not received the attention it deserves. For these and other reasons, a bill introduced last week by Senator Jim Webb, Democrat of Virginia, should be given high priority on the Congressional calendar.
The bill, which has strong bipartisan support, would establish a national commission to review the system from top to bottom. It is long overdue, and should be up and running as soon as possible.
The United States has the highest reported incarceration rate in the world. More than 1 in 100 adults are now behind bars, for the first time in history. The incarceration rate has been rising faster than the crime rate, driven by harsh sentencing policies like “three strikes and you’re out,” which impose long sentences that are often out of proportion to the seriousness of the offense.
Keeping people in prison who do not need to be there is not only unjust but also enormously expensive, which makes the problem a priority right now. Hard-pressed states and localities that reduce prison costs will have more money to help the unemployed, avert layoffs of teachers and police officers, and keep hospitals operating. In the last two decades, according to a Pew Charitable Trusts report, state corrections spending soared 127 percent, while spending on higher education increased only 21 percent.
Meanwhile, as governments waste money putting the wrong people behind bars, gang activity has been escalating, accounting for as much as 80 percent of the crime in some parts of the country.
The commission would be made up of recognized criminal justice experts, and charged with examining a range of policies that have emerged haphazardly across the country and recommending reforms. In addition to obvious problems like sentencing, the commission would bring much-needed scrutiny to issues like the special obstacles faced by the mentally ill in the system, as well as the shameful problem of prison violence.
Prison management and inmate treatment need special attention now that the Prison Litigation Reform Act has drastically scaled back prisoners’ ability to vindicate their rights in court. Indeed, the commission should consider recommending that the law be modified or repealed.
Mr. Webb has enlisted the support of not only the Senate’s top-ranking Democrats, including the majority leader, Harry Reid, but also influential Republicans like Arlen Specter, the ranking minority member on the Judiciary Committee, and Lindsey Graham, the ranking member of the crime and drugs subcommittee.
There is no companion bill in the House, and one needs to be written. Judging by the bipartisan support in the Senate, a national consensus has emerged that the criminal justice system is broken.
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Response to Editorial: Reviewing Criminal Justice – By David Zapp
If you had to be a prisoner in the United States, this is certainly the time. Because of the severe economic downturn in the United States, the government will not be able to keep prisoners incarcerated as long as they have. Sentences will need to be lower, “good time” credit will have to increase and “alternative sentencing” will have to be enacted. “Tough on crime” initiatives will be toned down or completely eliminated and mandatory sentencing will be given a second look.
The Administrative Office of the United States Courts recently suggested, “a monthly cost of $2,076.83 [per inmate] to be used for imprisonment, and a monthly cost of $301.80 for supervision.”
Last month, The New York Post printed an article stating, “All of the city’s DA’s—with the exception of Manhattan—are drastically scaling back the hiring of new assistant district attorneys, in hopes of saving enough bucks to ride out the current fiscal crisis. . . The Bronx DA’s office is slashing their incoming crop from 50 to 10, while Brooklyn is taking in only 35 newcomers, down from the regular 60.” That means prosecutors’ case loads will rise and plea bargains will have to be more generous.
New York’s harsh Rockefeller drug laws are being reformed. Instead of receiving prison sentences, non-violent offenders will receive treatment, which will save the state money. California has been ordered to reduce its prison population citing poor health care due to overcrowded conditions and as a cost cutting measure. The state simply cannot afford to build more jails. Georgia has ordered state employees to work one or two days less a week. Where will the state employee cutbacks be made? According to reports, the cutbacks will come from Corrections and its Juvenile Justice System.
It will not be easy for inmates in the beginning. Programs will be abolished, the quality of food and medical care will go down and “quality of life” will become a matter of constitutional concern. Eventually, the courts will step in and prison authorities, if they do not do something on their own, will be forced to consider releasing prisoners earlier.
Deportable aliens of non-violent offenses will fare best. What sense does it make to keep a man or woman in jail to protect society when that inmate is not going to be a part of the society? Several states have already implemented “early deportation” programs. In New York, a non-violent state prisoner facing deportation can be paroled “for deportation only” after serving 50% of his or her sentence. That means if you are serving a five year sentence, you can be deported in two and a half. The U.S. prison system will have to create a similar program. It cannot afford not to. The less time a prisoner is incarcerated the less money has to be spent on him or her. It is that simple.