Pubdate: Wed, 29 Jan 2014
Source: Washington Post (DC)
Copyright: 2014 The Washington Post Company
Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/mUgeOPdZ
Website: http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/491

JUSTICE FOR CRIMINALS

Lock-'Em-Up Policies Can Do More Harm Than Good.

TEXAS GOV. RICK Perry (R) said last week that he favors
decriminalizing marijuana in his state, which used to define
law-and-order politics. In fact, Texas hasn't been living up to its
lock-'em-up reputation for a while now; it is one of many states that
has been looking for safe ways to reduce the number of people behind
bars - saving money and wasted lives.

The nation is seeing a swing back from the excesses of the end of the
last century, when seemingly every major politician had to propose
harsh anti-crime policies to be taken seriously. The swing is to the
good. With crime rates down, leaders should take the political
opportunity to reform the system - while not swinging too far in the
other direction. The trick is to preserve public safety but eliminate
the unnecessary costs and illogically punitive penalties that came
with the get-tough approach.

In the Lone Star State, the effort has conservative roots.
Budget-minded state leaders crafted an alternative to perpetually
feeding money into prison construction to warehouse non-violent
offenders, rather than investing in drug treatment or better parole
programs. The state offered more power to specialized drug courts, for
example. It revamped parole to swiftly punish violations without
automatically sending people back to jail for long terms. Texas also
made it easier for former prisoners to reintegrate into society after
release by making it less likely their employers would know about or
act on their criminal records. Justice reform programs come with
strict requirements, such as looking for a job and paying child support.

Texas is hardly alone. A report from the Urban Institute examines the
early experience of 17 states now participating in a criminal justice
reform initiative that invests savings from reducing prison
populations into programs to decrease first time incarceration and
recidivism. Sponsored by the Justice Department, the program includes
better drug treatment programs and post-release services. Policymakers
have geared parole monitoring toward mending behavior with graduated
punishments that increase in severity with continued non-compliance.
The 17 states project savings of as much as $4.6 billion over the next
several years. The reductions in human suffering are
incalculable.

Not every pleasant-sounding reform will work. Many criminals deserve
to be locked up, and that is expensive. Locking up criminals has been
part of the explanation for lower crime rates. But that can't justify
mass incarceration. As states conducting reforms gain experience,
others should follow their lead.  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D