Incarceration in the United States is a concurrent power under the Constitution of the United States, which means that prisons are operated under strict authority of both the federal and state governments. Incarceration is one of the main forms of punishment for the commission of felony offenses in the United States. Less serious offenders, such as those convicted of misdemeanor offenses, may receive a short term sentence to be served in a local city or county jail, or to alternative forms of sanctions such as community corrections (halfway house) or house arrest. Different U.S. prisons operate at different levels of security, ranging from minimum-security prisonsâthat mainly house non-violent offendersâto Supermax facilities that house the more dangerous criminals. The United States has the highest documented incarceration rate in the world.[1][2] The U.S. incarceration rate on December 31, 2008 was 754 inmates per 100,000 U.S. residents, or 0.75%.[3] The USA also has the highest total documented prison and jail population in the world.[1][4][5] According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS): "In 2008, over 7.3 million people were on probation, in jail or prison, or on parole at year-end â 3.2% of all U.S. adult residents or 1 in every 31 adults."[6] 2,304,115 were incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails in 2008.[3][7] In addition, according to a December 2009 BJS report, there were 92,854 held in juvenile facilities as of the 2006 Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement (CJRP), conducted by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.[3][8] Jails cost $36 billion in 2006 nearly 70% were re-arrested within 3 years Could be some money savings here ?
My solution for prison over crowding, simple, cost effective and indisputably eliminates repeat offenders. (for violent felons and career criminals, not misdemeanors)
Maybe the Christian approach of foregiveness is a bit over stretched ? Each prisoner costs about $75,000 per year to goal. I dont know how many are 1st degree murderers there are, but a certain saving of money and resources to be had here it seems. what would you recommend for less serious crimes ?
A better approach is to reform the drug laws in this country. We need to get our head out of the sand and treat drug use in this country the same way we view alcohol consumption and tobacco use. Find a way to legalize, control, tax it and you will see a decline in crime resulting in a savings in local law enforcement, courts, prisons, and such. Too bad locking people up is such a big business in the US. Too many people would be put out of work.
Hard labor 12 hours a day six days a week. No television no basketball no weight lifting. A prisoner assaults a corrections officer in any way shape form or fashion they're taken out to the yard and hung from a pole, where the stench of their rotting body can serve as a lesson for the others.
Get rid of parole and probation. I know people who work in the industry. The same faces are going through revolving doors for decades. It literally starts as a shoplifting charge for a juvenile and when that person's 35 they're still on probation. They get violated for every little thing imaginable, much of which is not their fault. A probation officer forgets to make an entry. Three years later when it's time for case summary to end their probation they are accused of missing an appointment years back. It never ends. The cost to society is tremendous. Do the crime - do the time - you go on with your life and society moves forward. And leaglize drugs. The only two reasons they are illegal is because stupid, stubborn old people run Congress and Fortune 500 companies make big bucks off it and bribe stupid, stubborn old Congressmen.
nearly 70% were re-arrested within 3 years Anybody got a job for a felon? Suppose we educate the inmates. Maybe require them to get a GED or vocational training or maybe some college. Now we have an educated felon without a job. Lifting wieghts in prison is quite a bit different than getting inmates to perform manual labor for pay. -------------------------------- You graduate to prison. Anyone hear of any good programs for juvenile offenders? Not likely. Pols do not spend money on juvenile offender programs, not sexy. Get tough on crime "send the bastards to jail" gets votes. In the 50's and 60's there were good programs for juvenile offenders, the states closed them down. less effort and more cost efficient to wait until the repeat offenders turn 18 and ship them off to a correctional facility.
Finally some logical and economical thinking. We truly were living in a bubble for the past decade. There was a lot of "wiggle room" for bullshit activities like the above. Not in THIS economy. The tea party will make the needed changes.