Pubdate: Wed, 03 Mar 2004
Source: Post-Crescent, The (Appleton,  WI)
Web page: 
http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/opinion_15004503.shtml
Copyright: 2004 The Post-Crescent
Contact:  http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1443

EDITORIAL: NONVIOLENT OFFENDERS DON'T ALWAYS NEED JAIL

In these hand-to-mouth days of governmental fiscal preservation, a chance 
to spend less and spend wisely is welcome.

Better yet are those rare convergences when government can exercise that 
pennywise prudency while making informed and enlightened social policy 
decisions.

We have one of those opportunities in a bill sponsored by state Sen. Carol 
Roessler, R-Oshkosh. If passed and signed into law, Roessler's proposal 
would help nonviolent drug and alcohol offenders get needed help instead of 
sending them to the state's prisons and jails, where treatment is likely 
less effective.

According to Roessler and other proponents, the bill doesn't just free more 
jail and prison space for Wisconsin inmates - too many of whom are exported 
to other states to serve their sentences. It also puts those offenders in 
situations that can help them adjust and cope with real-life situation 
better than the cells of our penal institutions. And it gives judges more 
latitude in selecting the appropriate direction for the defendants who come 
before them.

If a judge decides that a drug or alcohol offender would be better served 
by treatment than by incarceration, the offender will be sent to an 
oversight committee - comprised of judges, prosecutors, law enforcement 
officials and substance abuse program administrators - who will assign 
proper treatment.

While we're reluctant to add another layer of responsibility on those 
offices, we are hopeful that a workable mechanism can be established for 
sharing the casework for these offenders. The bottom line for such a 
mechanism, obviously, is that recidivism is reduced, and lives are improved.

Saving money - Roessler claims keeping more state inmates in-state can 
recoup up to $7,000 per inmate annually - is a worthy cause anytime, but 
especially in these deficit-laden days. Still, a program that doesn't make 
substantive and sustainable improvements in our judicial processes, and the 
lives of people who need help, could cost us more in the long run.

Roessler's proposal, while not perfect, has a good chance to both help our 
fiscal picture and help our fellow citizens. 
- ---
MAP posted-by: Perry Stripling