Well, I don’t mean let out all prisoners, or let them out for the full duration of their sentences. But Oregon should listen to State Rep. Chip Shields, who wants to explore new ways to save money in corrections. Right now the state plans to cut police hours, cut parole and probation, and shut down Oregon courts one day a week. The only problem, says Chief Justice Paul De Muniz, is that a backlog of cases could keep the state from providing speedy trials, thus violating the civil rights of those accused. Muniz also points out that the $3.1 million saved in salaries by closing courts will cost the state about $5 million in lost revenue, because fewer defendents will be ordered to pay fines and fees, and the state will have 4 days and not 5 to collect them.
Shields is suggesting that one way to save corrections money would be to expand “transitional leave”–that is, the final 30 days of an inmate’s sentence. Cutting their prison time could save millions of dollars for the state. Seems to me that this is a no-brainer. Why, then, are legislators not rushing to support Rep. Shields’ suggestion?
There are two main reasons, I suspect. First of all, Oregon voters have this idea that they should make laws instead of their legislators. Trouble is, the voters rarely study the issues in depth or understand the implications of their vote. They passed Measure 11 and then just last year, Measure 57, both of which set mandatory sentences for certain offenders. Do our citizens understand what kind of money it takes to keep people in prison? Have they considered the trade-offs? I think not. They think, “Punish, punish, punish.” And rehabilitation is not much of a consideration these days, so these same offenders who are punished will of course be likely to “strike out” and be permanent residents of our prisons, at huge expense to the public.
And then the second reason lawmakers are balking at Shields’ suggestion is that prison is a business. Lots of people make money from the prison industry, and these folks will lobby hard to keep our prisons full. This is a shameful reason to keep filling our prisons–to make a buck on the backs of the most miserable and forelorn of our society.
I’m not saying that no one should be in prison. Some people need to go there and stay there, for they are violent, and unlikely to change. We can’t risk letting them loose. But most prisoners are not there because of violent acts. There are ways of dealing with misdeeds other than putting people behind bars and isolating them from society–generally leaving them embittered, without much hope for a future.
Certainly a step in the right direction for prison reform would be to let non-violent offenders out on probation earlier, thus releasing millions of dollars for more crucial concerns. Oregon, take this tiny step in the direction of common sense and creativity.
