Prisons

Criminal Justice Reinvestment Act Would Help Localities Conduct Studies to Control Costs

November 16, 2009 -- Washington, D.C. - United States Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced today the Criminal Justice Reinvestment Act of 2009 to help states and localities better understand how to manage the growth in prison and jail populations and increase public safety.

The legislation would authorize grants to analyze criminal justice trends and to design and implement policies to better manage prison spending. Congressmen Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Dan Lungren (R-CA) also introduced companion legislation today in the U.S. House of Representatives.    » read more »

Cites Decreasing Inmate Numbers, New Correction Officer Graduating Class And Effective Post-release Programs As Factors

November 6, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced she has directed the Department of Correction to consider closing a prison, citing a decline in the inmate population, the agency’s success with a number of post-release programs and the need to find savings and efficiencies in state government.    » read more »

Governor says Legislature must act to protect police and fire services, K-12 education, Medicaid, Promise scholarships

October 12, 2009 -- LANSING - Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today signed fiscal year 2010 appropriations bills for the departments of Corrections, Education and Transportation.

"While I have now signed six budget bills, work is far from done on the budget," Granholm said. "The Senate needs to send me the six budgets they are withholding, and both the Senate and the House need to finish their jobs. We must protect police and fire services, K-12 education, Medicaid, and the Promise scholarships, but so far, the Legislature has failed to provide the necessary funding."

Department of Corrections    » read more »

Bill aims to prevent inmates from using technology to commit crimes outside of prison walls

October 5, 2009 -- Washington, D.C. –U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) today announced legislation to prevent inmates from using cell phones to commit crimes from inside prison walls.

The bill would close a loophole in federal law by prohibiting the use or possession of cell phones and wireless devices in federal prisons. The bill also would classify cell phones and wireless devices as contraband material. Anyone who provides, or attempts to provide, an inmate with a cell phone could face imprisonment of up to one year.    » read more »

Cross-agency coordination critical to preparing inmates for productive future; New “I-ADAPT” process will start re-entry planning at beginning of sentence

May 11, 2009 -- NEW CASTLE — Inmates unprepared to succeed when reintroduced to society are far more likely to commit additional crimes when released. To reduce these repeat offenses and curb the cost of re-incarceration, Delaware Governor Jack Markell tasked several Cabinet Secretaries in January to come up with some real solutions to these pressing problems without increasing up-front cost to taxpayers.    » read more »

President’s Request Supports Department’s Traditional Missions While Strengthening National Security Efforts

May 7, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that the President’s FY 2010 budget proposal totals $26.7 billion for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to increase support for the Department’s traditional missions while strengthening national security efforts. The request represents a 3.8 percent increase in budget authority and an increase of 3,977 positions over the FY 2009 enacted appropriation.    » read more »

May 5, 2009 -- HARRISBURG – Initiatives to improve law enforcement and public safety, strengthen counterdrug training and ease prison overcrowding would get a significant boost if grant applications for more than $95 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding are approved.

Governor Edward G. Rendell announced today that the State Police, Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, Department of Corrections and the Commission on Crime and Delinquency recently submitted applications to aggressively pursue additional federal stimulus funding to enhance public safety initiatives.    » read more »

Mar 18, 2009 -- SHREVEPORT – Today, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal joined Department of Corrections Secretary Jimmy LeBlanc to announce that the state will be partnering with sheriffs in a program to better prepare state prison inmates for release and re-entry into society so they do not become repeat offenders. The Governor said that currently, inmates in state prisons have access to re-entry initiatives, but many state prisoners in local or parish jails do not have access to these services.    » read more »

Washington, DC - 03/02/2009 - Explosive growth in the number of people on probation or parole has propelled the population of the American corrections system to more than 7.3 million, or 1 in every 31 U.S. adults, according to a report released today by the Pew Center on the States. The vast majority of these offenders live in the community, yet new data in the report finds that nearly 90 percent of state corrections dollars are spent on prisons.

One in 31: The Long Reach of American Corrections examines the scale and cost of prison, jail, probation and parole in each of the 50 states, and provides a blueprint for states to cut both crime and spending by reallocating prison expenses to fund stronger supervision of the large number of offenders in the community.    » read more »

WASHINGTON -- August 12, 2008 – A bill introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to extend the United States Parole Commission for three years was signed into law by the President today.    » read more »

June 17, 2008 -- TALLAHASSEE – Florida Governor Charlie Crist today commended Florida Department of Corrections and Florida Parole Commission employees for completing the review of all pre-2008 cases of ex-offenders eligible for automatic restoration of civil rights.

At the first statewide Florida Restoration of Rights Summit at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Governor Crist announced that since the Florida Board of Executive Clemency approved a rule change providing for the restoration of the civil rights for certain ex-offenders, 115,232 individuals have had their civil rights restored.    » read more »

21 May 2008 -- The United States has defended its policy of detaining juveniles in prisons in Iraq, and Afghanistan. The issue is expected to be high on the agenda Thursday when the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child examines U.S. compliance with U.N. rules on dealing with children in armed conflict.

In a report submitted to the U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child, the United States acknowledges it has detained almost 2,500 youths under the age of 18 since 2002. Almost all have been detained in Iraq under President Bush's anti-terrorism campaign.

Washington says it is holding more than 500 juveniles suspected of being "unlawful enemy combatants" in detention centers in Iraq. Another 10 are being held at the U.S. base at Bagram, Afghanistan.    » read more »

April 17, 2008 -- Des Moines – Today, at the John R. Grubb YMCA in Des Moines, Iowa Governor Chet Culver signed into law HF 2393, a bill requiring a “Minority Impact Statement” for any legislation related to a public offense, sentencing, or parole and probation procedures. The legislation also requires that any application for a grant from a state agency must also include a minority impact statement.    » read more »

"Second Chance Act" Increases Funding for Ex-Offender Re-Entry Programs

April 10, 2008 -- Washington, DC – Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) today expressed his strong support for the enactment into law of the “Second Chance Act,” bi-partisan legislation that seeks to make communities safer by providing the resources necessary to reduce recidivism rates. Webb, a cosponsor of the measure, has made the nation’s growing prison population one of his top legislative priorities.    » read more »

April 10, 2008 -- Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster announced today that the House Judiciary Criminal Laws Subcommittee unanimously passed H. 4309, the bill that would abolish parole for all crimes in South Carolina.

“Thanks to the leadership of Chairman Murrell Smith and the subcommittee, we have taken the first step toward restoring the public’s confidence in the criminal sentencing process,” said McMaster.

The bill now moves to the full House Judiciary Committee. A companion bill, S. 894, is currently being considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Source: South Carolina Attorney General