Editor’s Note: The Calif. budget deficit is at $26.3 billion. On July 23rd, given opposition surrounding the inmate release, legislators decided to postpone for one month a vote on the budget-repair package.
“I hereby sentence you to three years in a state prison. The defendant will be remanded to the department of corrections for this time… or until public funding runs out.”
Have you ever heard a judge speak words like these? Neither have I. In fact, they sound ridiculous.
Nonetheless, with a new trend towards inmate early release (in order to balance burdened state budgets) it’s not far from the truth.
Nationwide, inmates are being released due to a lack of funding. Correctional professionals watch helplessly as “low-risk” inmates walk out the door, only to return...
I am writing this as a reminder to all of us, and perhaps to educate the newer officers among us: Simply freeing inmates without first creating proven, effective programs for combating recidivism will not work. Crime rates will rise and they’ll all be back on our doorstep in less than a year.
The California Concern
As I write this, California legislators are planning to release around 27,000 inmates in order to cut costs. If these inmates are released, program and staffing will surely be reduced too.
Nonetheless, statistics show that within six months, more than 18,900 of these released inmates will return to jail or prison after breaking the law again. According to the office of the Governor, California’s recidivism rate is a whopping 70 percent.
What I think many people fail to realize is that criminals don’t simply knock on prison doors and say, “Hi, I’d like to be let back into my cell now.”
Instead they commit new offenses — offenses that could have been avoided or postponed through continued incarceration or proper monitoring through the parole system.
Further, this vast number of new criminals entering the parole system will paralyze parole officers from carrying out their required tasks. Given funding doesn’t exist to efficiently expand parole programs, monitoring will be all but non-existent, basically giving these criminals free reign.
Yes, there will be a small percentage of criminals who are ready to leave and will never commit crimes again, but I assure you, they are a small minority and do not justify the scores of new victims that will be created by these inmate releases.
Playing Dodgeball with Boomerangs
Given current statistics, within six months these criminals will return to prison or jail.
The department of corrections will be faced with a swelling population… again. The mix of returning criminals, along with new criminals will strain the reduced staffing and program ratios. Further, new criminals will see that as long as they keep a good record in prison, they will be released early. Thus, the risk associated with committing crime will decline in their view.
For anyone that has ever had their house, car, or business broken into or robbed, you understand that ‘minor’ crimes by ‘low-risk’ criminals are anything but minor for the victims involved. They are serious financial (and often emotional) burdens to be harbored in already trying times.
With the swell of returning inmates, departments will be forced to continue care and custody of the same number of inmates they had before the budget cuts, only with fewer resources. History has shown time and again that this leads to violence, injury and chaos within the prison system.
Storm Clouds Moving East
I’ve highlighted California here because they are the latest in a string of early release programs throughout the country — and the numbers involved are staggering. Unfortunately, the problem does not stop at California borders. No state is completely sheltered from this concern.
Nationwide, we are violating the public’s trust by allowing this to happen. Remember, we took an oath. And, if you think public opinion is low now, just wait until these released inmates commit new crimes in society. At the end of the day the legislators’ feet will not be held to the fire. Instead, the question the media will ask is: “Why did the department of corrections release these inmates?”
Foreshadowing Failure
The worst part of all this is that in the long run it will fail to save any money. In fact, it will most-likely cost the state more.
Whereas an inmate who sits in state prison costs about $50,000 a year, when released he accrues a whole new list of expenses:
• Before the inmate even commits a new crime there are costs for monitoring him and providing all the new counseling and help programs that are available to him
• When a new crime is committed (70% of the time) there will be costs in the arrest of the inmate — more officers will be needed on the streets to combat the new wave of crime
• When the criminal is apprehended, we will have to pay to keep him in the county facility
• Then there are the costs of a trial, the inmates’ attorney, not to mention the costs of victims’ services
• When the inmate is convicted, there are the administrative costs of preparing the proper paperwork and time calculations
• If all this is not enough, we now have to pay to transport him to what is most likely the same facility he was at to start with
• Then there are the costs of intake, which include expensive medical and psychological exams, along with the evaluation for illegibility into education and vocational programs
• Finally, given the likelihood that many of the new crimes will be property crimes, there will also be the costs of recovering restitution
The biggest cost of all though will be the creation of new victims. This cost cannot be calculated in dollars. It can only be calculated in the pain our legislators will create by punching-through their irresponsible budget solutions.
In the long run, although there will have been instant savings to the budget, not only will these inmates cost us financially, but they’ll cost us in blood, in sweat, and in tears.
In a perfect world we could indeed send these “low-risk” inmates out into the community and know that they will take advantage of the second chance.
We do not, however, live in a perfect world.
As I mentioned, no judge ever sentenced an inmate to serve his full sentence only if there wasn’t a budget shortfall. Frankly, it makes me physically ill to think that nationwide we are violating our oath and the public trust by releasing inmates early.
Stand Up for What You Believe In
But our hands are tied, right? This is the work of our state lawmakers; we have no control, right?
This is true only as far as you’re willing to believe it.
It is our duty as a group of professionals to stand up and do what we can to avoid this situation, not just in California, but nationwide. We must inform our legislators about how we feel and explain to all of our non-corrections friends and family what the consequences of these cuts will ultimately be.
If we take action, one of two things could happen:
First, we’ll place enough pressure on the lawmakers to avoid the release. This would be amazing — and is not impossible — but I wouldn’t hold your breath.
Second, we’ll spread the word. We’ll warn our communities of the impending increase of crime due to these releases. We’ll raise awareness so that when the crimes are committed, the right people are held accountable.
Further, we can help our communities prepare. These “low-risk” inmates are often property crime convicts and drug offenders. They already have victims, and more will surely be created.
I implore you to call your lawmakers office today. Take a stand against these types of budget cuts. Forward this (or similar articles) to your lawmakers and friends and family, so that they can fully understand the scope of what could happen, and how the release of inmates will only cost us more in the future.
It is critical that we continue to uphold the oath of protection and self sacrifice that we committed to, and that we do what we can to help our friends, families, and neighbors in times like these.
I have watched — and am very proud to see — that even through the reduced benefits and wages we now receive, every officer is still out there doing their job. We know we’re doing more than just a job — we have a true commitment to the safety of the people we serve.
Stay safe our there and watch your six. E-mail me stories of how the budget cuts have affected your prison or jail so I can address them in later columns — let’s keep each other informed!