Pubdate: Wed, 25 Sep 2002
Source: Capital Times, The  (WI)
Copyright: 2002 The Capital Times
Contact:  http://www.captimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/73
Author: Mark Wehrly
Note: Mark Wehrly is vice chairman of the Task Force on Money, Education 
and Prisons.

STATE NEEDS TO TAKE HARD LOOK AT PRISON POLICIES

Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk's run for governor should go down in 
history for her willingness to address directly the outrages of our state 
corrections system. The pointed debate between Falk and Attorney General 
Jim Doyle was the first real public dialogue on the issue in recent memory.

Falk called for a leaner corrections system, with more and cheaper 
alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent offenders, especially those 
caught up in the never-ending war on drugs. Falk asserted that Wisconsin 
could save much of our nearly $1 billion annual outlay on prisons if we 
took up a more enlightened policy, such as that exhibited by our neighbor 
Minnesota.

Doyle disputed that Minnesota's system was better, and restated his pride 
in his role in creating the truth-in-sentencing statute, which by some 
accounts could increase the corrections system budget by another 50 percent 
in this decade.

Let's look at the Wisconsin-Minnesota comparison. In 1999, the FBI ranked 
Wisconsin 40th among states in violent crimes per 100,000 citizens. 
Minnesota ranked 41st. Not much difference there. In June of this year, 
Minnesota had 6,529 inmates and Wisconsin had 21,117, more than three times 
as many.

Wisconsin's current general fund corrections budget is $816 million, or 
about 11 percent more than Minnesota's $735 million, but Minnesota is 
spending much more on community-based programming and much less on bricks 
and mortar and guarding inmates.

As truth in sentencing kicks in over the next few years, these disparities 
will greatly increase. The net effect is that many more Minnesota felons 
are in their communities with their families, holding jobs and making 
restitution, and the crime rate of the two states is essentially the same.

Minnesota's policy of "community corrections first" is cheaper, reduces 
costly incarceration, and has no negative effects on public safety. This 
would seem to justify a public debate about Wisconsin's "incarcerate first" 
policy.

Unfortunately, the rhetoric of our public officials over the past decade 
has consisted of demands to lock people up even while total crimes have 
fallen every year since 1991. The larger issue is whether it truly enhances 
public safety to demonize lawbreakers and put them in cages at high cost to 
the state budget, their families and communities, or attempt to break the 
cycle of recidivism that is the real cause of prison growth.

Here are some approaches that could address the growth in Wisconsin 
corrections spending and preserve public safety:

Provide more options to judges for treatment alternatives to prison for 
low-level drug offenders, and for property crime violators who are drug 
addicted. California has seen dramatic success with such an initiative.

Enact sentencing guidelines for judges, so that truth-in-sentencing 
legislation does not have the unintended consequence of greatly increasing 
average sentences across felony categories. Jim Doyle has proposed this 
approach. If the high-end estimate of the truth-in-sentencing effect on 
prison growth holds, inmate populations could rise one-third by 2005, 
resulting in several hundred million dollars in additional costs.

Permit greater discretion for judges to release inmates with serious health 
and mental health issues for community treatment, as well as for old age 
when the likelihood of further criminal behavior is near zero.

Increase Department of Corrections funding of community corrections to 
reduce the impossibly high caseloads now facing parole officers, and 
provide drug and alcohol and mental health treatment for all supervised 
felons who need it. Passing mental health and substance abuse insurance 
parity legislation would help reduce the state's treatment costs considerably.

Enact "corrections transparency" legislation to require the DOC to provide 
timely and complete information on its population, including crimes and 
time served, inmate and supervised release population demographics, and 
health/mental health/substance abuse programming and outcomes. The lack of 
comprehensive, longitudinal information means that public debate - and 
legislative corrections policy - are conducted largely in a vacuum.

Address recidivism. Only about 30 percent of prisoners are incarcerated for 
new offenses - the great majority are probation and parole violators, and 
nearly all have been in "the system" numerous times, beginning in 
adolescence. A rational, comprehensive approach would provide meaningful 
job training, GED courses and substance abuse/mental health treatment in 
prisons. It would also prohibit discrimination against felons in employment 
except in areas of bona fide public safety concerns. Inmates should not 
leave prison unemployable, untreated and hostile toward society.

Enact legislation to require "financial impact statements" for all new 
criminal laws and planned state and local corrections facilities. Such 
legislation has been narrowly defeated or vetoed several times in recent 
years. The lack of public information on the true cost of new criminal laws 
permits fiscally irresponsible political pandering.

A genuine public debate would consider the costs to society in crime and 
expense of ignoring the needs of high-risk populations, especially 
low-income families and communities of color. Emerging scientific research 
on early childhood development and the correlation of childhood abuse and 
neglect on later criminality makes clear that society is paying a heavy 
price for ignoring these connections. We are in a true "pay me now or pay 
me much more later" situation. Children at high risk for abuse, neglect, 
school dropout, mental illness and substance abuse are not receiving 
adequate services, with the predictable outcome of criminal involvement at 
a high social cost.

We must also face our racism head on. Wisconsin incarcerates 
African-Americans at the highest rate in the nation, while our population 
is among the whitest in the nation. We should look for reasons for this in 
the mechanics of the justice system, but more importantly we should look at 
ourselves and ask if this is really the kind of corrections system and 
state we want to have.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens