The Case for Sentencing Reform
As Colorado faces an historic budget and economic crisis, including $1.4 billion in cuts, and risk of closure of significant portions of state services, including public higher education, the question has quite fairly been asked…
“Have we done everything we can to reduce wasteful spending?”
And the answer is “no.”
But it may not be where you think. There is no fluff or frills in Colorado’s budget that has one of the lowest state tax rates in the Country and a requirement to balance the budget every year. Corrections is feeling the brunt of the legislature’s failure to lead and act to take on sentencing reform.
We have introduced 2 omnibus sentencing reform bills today that reflect smarter choices on prison policy and spending.
We are currently spending twice as much on corrections as higher education and it is now the 3 largest item in our budget and growing. Most other states have taken similar moves as an effort to be evidence-based, smarter on crime and smarter with spending taxpayer money. Colorado can’t afford NOT to consider sentencing reform.
Here are some facts to consider:
- It costs $30,386 per inmate per year in operating costs and $150,773 per year per inmate for capital construction.
- 74% of our prison population is in for non-violent offenses.
- The Department of Corrections has become the single largest “mental health care provider” in the State of Colorado.
- Probation costs $3.42 per day to supervise whereas prison costs $78.95 per day to supervise.
- 1 in 29 Colorado residents are now under correctional control. (That figure was 1 in 102 in 1982).
- At the current rate of incarceration we would need to build a new prison every year.
- For the cost of incarcerating 1 inmate we could
- Educate 5 children in K12;
- Fund tuition for 10 students in higher education;
- Pay the full health insurance premiums for 3 families per year;
- Fund 6 Medicaid enrollees for health care;
What’s more is that we have research that demonstrates that we are no longer getting any public safety returns at the level we are spending. If fact, there is a significant body of research demonstrating that the funds can be better spent in ways that not only improve public safety and reduce recidivism but also save us money.
We can no longer afford to waste money on things that don’t work and we need to prioritize our money on incarcerating people who are a true threat to society.
April 15th, 2009 at 10:47 pm
Senator Carroll, perhaps one silver lining of this terrible economic crisis is that we now have a historic opportunity to reverse the troubling trend in our correctional system.
It is absolutely ludicrous that our “correctional” system has become increasingly about punishment as opposed to being focused on rehabilitating prisoners who end up on the inside.
Also, the practice of allowing private corporations to run jails and prisons in the state is a tragedy and a travesty against Coloradans. Corporations should not be earning dollars off of criminals — this leads to a disastrous situation where these corporations are actually invested in ensuring recidivism so that they can continue to increase their profit margins.
Reining in Pinnacol Assurance was a great first step to giving the people of Colorado control of their government again — now we need to take back our correctional system and redefine its mission.
Thank you again.
April 16th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
END MANDATORY PAROLE IN COLORADO NOW! IT’S WORTHLESS, IT SETS PAROLEES UP TO FAIL AND IT CAUSES MORE ECONOMIC DAMAGE TO TAXPAYERS!
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/end-mandatory-parole-in-colorado-now#signatures
April 16th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
The state is spending millions on programs for inmates in the DOC. Guess what? None of the programs matter. Upon acceptance to community corrections or parole the offender must attend the same classes for a second or third time. Why spend millions on classes that have no value? Wasteful? Absolutely!Community corrections is the most corupt enterprise in criminal justice. My employee spent five years in prison for a non-violent offense. She stole money to pay her spouse’s medical bills. She has finally been accepted to community corrections. She spent 6 weeks in the Denver County Jail waiting for a bed at Tooley Hall. Upon arrival to Tooley Hall she was told that her time in the Denver Jail did not count and she would need to start her ninety days in community the day she arrived at Tooley Hall. She was told she could not receive approval for passes to be with her little girl until she entered treatment. She is not a drug or alcohol user so she must take cognitive classes, the very same classes she completed in prison. She completed them four times in prison. Who does this benefit? Not the taxpayer.
April 20th, 2009 at 7:53 pm
Are these “failures” system failures or failures by the inmates. At what are these grown adults responsible for themselves?
April 26th, 2009 at 2:53 am
It seems to me that people do not realize that the United States has 5 times the number of inmates than any other industrialized nation in the world per capita…And that includes the former Soviet Union…
Personally, I find that offensive that our government has become such a powerful entity that we as Americans find this acceptable…We vote for changes and the government officals go behind our backs and use private corporations back by state issued bonds to build and finance such despite the fact we as voters said NO…That needs to change…The politicians are elected by us and they have forgotten this…They work for us…Not us work for them…It is time for a change…It is necessary to keep our Nation great…Without it future generations are going to be paying for our ignorance for years and years to come…We have no right to burden our future with our problems of today…Changes must be made now…
April 28th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
First, to Anna Snyder, it’s a shame that your employee had to go through all of that.
Secondly, (because I’m hot on the trail today), how many of these prisoners are illegal immigrants and NEED to be deported. I remember an instance approximately two years ago of an illegal shooting off his gun/rifle on New Years (because it is HIS Mexican tradition). We have laws here against that. Needless to say, his bullet killed an innocent little girl who was sitting on a relatives lap. If memory serves correctly, it was about a block away from where he shot the gun/rifle. WHY are these people allowed to do this and STAY IN OUR COUNTRY???? even if it is in prison! More of our hard earned $$ down the drain.
Now, on prisoners, they are just that – prisoners, and should be treated as such. I’d love to have free meals,free exercise, and not have work. Isn’t this what they do?
Unfortunately, I have worked all my life and again am a victim of “position eliminated”.
I better get off my soap box now.