Georgia State Prison in Tattnall County. Source: History Atlanta. (2015).
Georgia Prisons are Overcrowded
Video addressing the pros and cons (more money needing to be spent to ease overpopulated prisons) to the newly proposed legislation of a "Taft community correction facility opening because of prison overcrowding." This is an example of what would happen if the prison population continues to increase under the current law. Source: ABC News, 2013.
Two strikes are not enough.
The state of Georgia enacted a problematic two strikes law in 1994. This law gives people two felony convictions before being put away in jail for life without parole, causing the prison population to surge (see Figure 1). The problem is that strikes are being given to offenders who have nonviolent drug offenses and are disproportionate with others who have murder convictions. While the second strike must violate one of the seven deadly sins in order to be sentenced to life without parole, drug offenses are racking up as people’s first strikes. Criminals with lower offenses are getting swept into the system under the 2 strikes law and are filling facilities, causing them to open more like the one in Taft (see video above), at rapid rates. Georgia’s law was put in place to put dangerous, repeat felons behind bars but ended up putting all types of repeat felons in jail. According to Governing, a website that provides current data on US state incarceration rates, the most recent statistics regarding Georgia’s fluctuation in inmate numbers are from 2010 with 49,164 prisoners. To put that in perspective, Washington currently holds 18,445 prisoners in total across the state. This is causing Georgia to have to pay for life prisoners as they go into the system and continuously age. Since the mandatory sentencing revolving around Georgia’s two strike law is exactly that, mandatory, many people have viewed it to be a problem. Georgia's former Governor Sonny Perdue wants to change the mandatory sentencing restriction because “thousands have been sentenced under the two strikes law” after the first ten years it was enacted (Dick Pettys, 2005). Another advocate for change is “Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Norman Fletcher [who] told lawmakers the mandatory minimums don't always assure justice but instead force long sentences on penny-ante crooks” (Dick Pettys, 2005). The flaw lies in the inability to serve justice based on the crime. With this inability comes larger inmate numbers and is “forcing the state to spend scarce state dollars on medical care for a growing group of aging prisoners” (Dick Pettys, 2005). With a little help from California, Georgia has the potential to save their taxpayers money by implementing a similar reform to the two strikes law.
The passing of Proposition 36 in California has already saved the state money compared to Washington State’s revision. Washington State revised their original 1993 legislation three years later which “broadened the definition of persistent offender to include “two strike” sex offenders” (OLR Research Report, Kevin E. McCarthy). To have them be considered two strikes, the sexually motivated incidents have to occur on two separate trips through the system. This amendment was not a major change to the law because the original law already included sexual offenders; this reform just decreased the number of offense it took to constitute life in prison from three strikes to two. Since this reform was a minimal change, it has not had a major impact on how much money taxpayers and the state of Washington saves; however, they continue to save more money compared to Georgia because “as a percentage of its population, [Georgia] has the fifth highest incarceration rate in the nation” (Black Law Offices, 2015). In essence, Georgia’s taxpayers are paying more money because the ratio of inmates to the total state population is high compared to Washington who has only the twenty-fifth highest incarceration rate in the nation. In contrast, California’s reform has saved them money by treating drug offenses as a need for treatment instead of a punishable crime with jail time. California has reduced the money needed to be spent on inmates since there are fewer of them and have put that money towards Substance Use Disorder treatments which are less expensive annually than the cost of an inmate. According to an article in the American Journal of Public Health, “the annual federal budget allocated to combat SUDs for the 2011 fiscal year was $15.5 billion” while the total cost of prisons for taxpayers was $39 billion (Christian Henrichson and Ruth Delaney, p.1). Since the population of SUDs is similar to the population of people in prison across the nation, (1.2 million compared to 1.5 million in 2011), SUD treatments are more cost beneficial (Ann E. Carson, Ph.D., and William J. Sabol, Ph.D., 2011). Given that Georgia’s inmate population is on the rise with help from a lenient two strikes law, I will argue that proposal 2, California’s reform, is more cost effective than proposal 1, Washington State’s three strikes law, in reducing the prison population because it has proven to be effective in saving money and has not cut into other areas of spending.
The passing of Proposition 36 in California has already saved the state money compared to Washington State’s revision. Washington State revised their original 1993 legislation three years later which “broadened the definition of persistent offender to include “two strike” sex offenders” (OLR Research Report, Kevin E. McCarthy). To have them be considered two strikes, the sexually motivated incidents have to occur on two separate trips through the system. This amendment was not a major change to the law because the original law already included sexual offenders; this reform just decreased the number of offense it took to constitute life in prison from three strikes to two. Since this reform was a minimal change, it has not had a major impact on how much money taxpayers and the state of Washington saves; however, they continue to save more money compared to Georgia because “as a percentage of its population, [Georgia] has the fifth highest incarceration rate in the nation” (Black Law Offices, 2015). In essence, Georgia’s taxpayers are paying more money because the ratio of inmates to the total state population is high compared to Washington who has only the twenty-fifth highest incarceration rate in the nation. In contrast, California’s reform has saved them money by treating drug offenses as a need for treatment instead of a punishable crime with jail time. California has reduced the money needed to be spent on inmates since there are fewer of them and have put that money towards Substance Use Disorder treatments which are less expensive annually than the cost of an inmate. According to an article in the American Journal of Public Health, “the annual federal budget allocated to combat SUDs for the 2011 fiscal year was $15.5 billion” while the total cost of prisons for taxpayers was $39 billion (Christian Henrichson and Ruth Delaney, p.1). Since the population of SUDs is similar to the population of people in prison across the nation, (1.2 million compared to 1.5 million in 2011), SUD treatments are more cost beneficial (Ann E. Carson, Ph.D., and William J. Sabol, Ph.D., 2011). Given that Georgia’s inmate population is on the rise with help from a lenient two strikes law, I will argue that proposal 2, California’s reform, is more cost effective than proposal 1, Washington State’s three strikes law, in reducing the prison population because it has proven to be effective in saving money and has not cut into other areas of spending.
Georgia's fluctuation of inmate numbers are from 2010 with 49,164 prisoners.
Proposal 1: Washington State’s Three Strikes LawWashington State has reformed their version of the three strikes law to allow it to “focus more on prevention and rehabilitation measures and less on the high-cost, low-return life sentences for certain offenders” (Washington's Three Strikes Law, p. 4). This means that the reforms, from the beginning, have saved the state money that would be necessary to spend on inmates and allowed for Washington to focus on helping those who need help. Originally when Washington passed the three strikes law in 1993, they intended to put criminals with three convictions behind bars to “(a) Improve public safety by placing the most dangerous criminals in prison. (b) Reduce the number of serious, repeat offenders by tougher sentencing. (c) Set proper and simplified sentencing practices that both the victims and persistent offenders can understand. (d) Restore public trust in our criminal justice system by directly involving the people in the process” (OLR Research Report, Kevin E. McCarthy). Washington was among the few states whose initial law was clearly set to be aimed at those who committed the most serious crimes. Their version of the three
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strikes law has been consistent in keeping the cost of prison low throughout the years by paying attention to the types of crimes that were committed and who was committing them. The law was only put into place to convict persistent offenders who committed the “most serious offenses” and had done so on three separate occasions. This was made clear to prevent lower level offenses from getting swept into the system under the three strikes law. They decided to reform the law in 1996 “to broadened the definition of persistent offender to include “two strike” sex offenders” (OLR Research Report, Kevin E. McCarthy). In order to be considered a persistent sex offender in Washington, one must be convicted on two separate convictions of sexual offenses “including first and second degree rape” (OLR Research Report). All of the prerequisites for the three strikes law in Washington were put into place to ensure the law only incarcerated those who fit the criteria of a persistent, serious offender. Spree killers, for example, constitute one strike because the purpose of the three strikes law is to incapacitate repeat criminals. The specifications Washington imposed in their version of the law never caused the inmate population to surge, in turn not owing as much money in taxes compared to other states.
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Washington’s mandatory sentencing has not burdened the prison system in terms of numbers. While it was estimated that the prison population would increase by nine percent over a twenty year period, not even that feasible number was met (as shown in Figure #2) and the projection was in turn lowered (Joshua A. Jones, p. 2). According to the Washington State Department of corrections, there has been no significant increase in the prison population regarding the three strikes law in 1993 or the two strikes sexual assault amendment in 1996.
Since Washington’s version of the three strikes law has yet to increase the prison population by substantial numbers, it has also yet to cause taxpayers to spend more on the correctional system. Washington’s three strikes offenders account for only twelve percent of the entire state prison population. Because the number of three strikers facing life without parole is considerably low, the fear of paying for “a growing elderly population” is as well (Washington’s Three Strikes Law, p. 10). The stringent, yet cost effective law has not caused a problem for the state’s monetary budget because it has no correlation to an increase in inmate population. Compared to other states like Georgia, whose “prisoners age 65 and older command an annual average medical
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care cost of $8,565” compared to the $961 it costs to take care of a regular inmate under the age of sixty-five, Washington is not burning a hole in their taxpayers pockets as an effect of their three strikes law (NBC News, Daniel Arkin). Washington’s version of the law has been successful at controlling who is reprimanded for repeated felonies since it was enacted in 1993. It is estimated that it costs “$98,000 per year to incarcerate an elderly prisoner” in the United States (Washington’s Three Strikes Law, p. 9). The comprehensive law in Washington has kept the number of people sentenced to life without parole down, in turn, not causing the people of Washington to have to pay unnecessary taxes towards caring for a growing elderly population in the future.
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Proposal #2: California’s reform
California first adopted a three strikes policy in 1994 that was considered the most harsh of any state with a three strikes law. Contrary to other states with this law, California counted nonviolent felonies as strikes. For example, people repeatedly committing drug offenses were being locked away for life without the possibility of parole because discretion in California was being exercised in the courts. California was on its way to increased numbers in its jail and “by 2005, the broad nature of the California three strikes statute was responsible for over 87,500 second and third-strike convictions” (Joshua A. Jones, p. 1). After just four years of the law being in place, California had over forty thousand convictions compared to Washington’s one hundred. California was in need of a reform with numbers surging to more than sixty different offenses being considered as strikes.
In 2012, California passed Proposition 36 which “requires that eligible non-violent drug offenders serve their time in a drug treatment program instead of in jail or prison” (California Proposition 36: How it Works, Shouse California Law Group). This reform was a major step in decreasing the exceedingly high incarceration rate in California to “112,300, or 135.8% of capacity” as of March 2015 (California’s Changing Prison Population). It allowed for law enforcement to act on a more narrow set of laws, decreasing the discretion possible to be exercised in the |
courtroom. This reform, making California's law more like Washington’s, made the bounds for three strikes smaller, therefore, diminishing the number of people sent to prison under the law. With the number of people being locked up for life decreasing, so did how much money was being spent on inmates.
With Proposition 36 in place, drug offenses were no longer being considered strikes and drug offenders were getting the help they needed through Substance Use Disorder (SUD) treatments (see Figure #3). By implementing SUD treatments, the “statewide policy effect has an adjusted savings of $2317 per offender over a 30-month postconviction period” (Anglin et al., p. 1). This means that by getting nonviolent drug offenders the help they needed instead of throwing them in jail, the state is saving taxpayers money and decreasing the prison population simultaneously. Not only does Proposition 36 (also known as the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention act) apply to new offenders, but it is also applicable to those on “probation or parole who commit nonviolent drug offenses or who violate drug-related conditions of community supervision” (Anglin et al., p. 2). Since the drug offender population in California jails was once at twenty-eight percent in 1999 (see Figure #4), this reform has worked to reduce the inmate population immensely. |
California’s reform has proven over the time it has been implemented to work and save a certain amount of money per offender. Proposition 36 has proof to support that it is a driving factor behind a decrease in incarceration rates and will continue to decrease exponentially as time goes on. Not only am I advocating for change in Georgia, but past Governors and current Supreme Court justices are as well. Sonny Perdue and Norman Fletcher
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are looking to make the law in Georgia more beneficial by providing “provision for a controlled re-entry, such as parole” or other forms of release (Dick Pettys). By providing an environment, such as Substance Use Disorder treatments (see Figure #5), that allows prisoners to transition from prison back to a normal life will save Georgia money, as proven by Proposition 36.
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To sum it up:
California reformed their law to make it better for taxpayers and criminals by not locking up unnecessary offenders. The criteria necessary for defining which proposal is better is seen through which one is more cost effective. Washington has had this law since 1996 and while it has not cost the state any substantial amount of money, it has also not decreased taxpayer spending. California has done a good job of amending what was once broken so the state as a whole would benefit. By reforming their law to only serious or violent offenders, they have succeeded in creating a more economic law with a more balanced population to inmate population ratio.
Washington State and California both have solid three strike laws that have proven to be more effective and cost beneficial than that in Georgia. Washington provides a strict law that does not allow for unfit offenders to get caught up in the system and keeps the taxpayers funding low. California reduced the number of people in their prisons by eliminating one of the main strike constraints causing taxpayers to not have to pay as much as they previously were. While both are more cost beneficial than Georgia’s current law, Georgia can benefit from California’s reform more than from Washington’s because “38 percent [of offenses] were drug-related, compared to 40 percent nationally” (Black Bear Rehab). Since Georgia’s inmate population is highly compiled of drug offenders, SUD treatments would help to reduce the number of people being sentenced to time in prison. Bringing in some form of Proposition 36 to Georgia would reduce the prison population, giving drug users the necessary help they need, instead of making taxpayers fund an expensive prison population.
Washington State and California both have solid three strike laws that have proven to be more effective and cost beneficial than that in Georgia. Washington provides a strict law that does not allow for unfit offenders to get caught up in the system and keeps the taxpayers funding low. California reduced the number of people in their prisons by eliminating one of the main strike constraints causing taxpayers to not have to pay as much as they previously were. While both are more cost beneficial than Georgia’s current law, Georgia can benefit from California’s reform more than from Washington’s because “38 percent [of offenses] were drug-related, compared to 40 percent nationally” (Black Bear Rehab). Since Georgia’s inmate population is highly compiled of drug offenders, SUD treatments would help to reduce the number of people being sentenced to time in prison. Bringing in some form of Proposition 36 to Georgia would reduce the prison population, giving drug users the necessary help they need, instead of making taxpayers fund an expensive prison population.
See Some Examples
Works Cited
Anglin, Douglas M., Bohdan Nosyk, Adi Jaffe, Darren Urada, and Elizabeth Evans. “American Journal of Public Health.” Offender Diversion
Into Substance Use Disorder Treatment: The Economic Impact of California’s Proposition 36 103.6 (2013): n. pag. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 9 Oct. 2015.
Arkin, Daniel. "Exploding Number of Elderly Prisoners Strains System, Taxpayers." NBC News. U.S. News, 29 June 2013. Web. 9 Nov.
2015.
Carson, Ann E., and William J. Sabol. "Prisoners in 2011." (n.d.): n. pag. Bureau of Justice Statistics. U.S. Department of Justice, Dec. 2012.
Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
Grattet, Ryken, and Joseph Hayes. "California's Changing Prison Population." (PPIC Publication). N.p., Apr. 2015. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
"Incarceration In Georgia | Black Law Offices, LLC." Black Law Offices. N.p., 2015. Web. 12
Nov. 2015.
Jones, Joshua A. "Assessing the Impact of "Three Strikes" Laws on Crime Rates and Prison Populations in California and Washington."
Student Pulse. N.p., 2012. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
Lee, Connor. "The Murder of George Thomas - History Atlanta." History Atlanta. N.p., 26 Oct. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
McCarthy, Kevin E. "RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON WASHINGTON STATE’S "THREE STRIKES" LAW." RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON
WASHINGTON STATE’S "THREE STRIKES" LAW. ORL Research Report, 08 Jan. 2009. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
Pettys, Dick. "Governor: Two-strikes Law Changes Currently on Hold." Online Athens. N.p., 4 Jan. 2005. Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
"The Price of Prisons: What Incarceration Costs Taxpayers." VERA Institute of Justice (n.d.): n. pag. 20 July 2012. Web. 6 Nov. 2015.
"Prison Populations and State Incarceration Rate Data." GOVERNING: The States and Localities. N.p., 2015. Web. 7 Nov. 2015.
"Proposition 36: Drug Treatment Instead of Jail." Shouse Law. Law Lytics, 2015. Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
"PUBLIC SAFETY & COST IMPLICATIONS OF LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE." Washington’s Three Strikes Law (n.d.): n. pag. Columbia Legal
Services. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
"Recovery First." Review / Rating. Recovery.org, 2015. Web. 20 Nov. 2015.
Schrager, Allison. "In America, Mass Incarceration Has Caused More Crime than It’s Prevented." Quartz. N.p., 22 July 2015. Web. 14 Nov.
2015.
"Statistics, Trends and Data on Substance Abuse and Treatment in Georgia - Black Bear Lodge." Black Bear Lodge. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov.
2015.
"Taft Community Correction Facility Could Open Because of Prison Overcrowding." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.
Anglin, Douglas M., Bohdan Nosyk, Adi Jaffe, Darren Urada, and Elizabeth Evans. “American Journal of Public Health.” Offender Diversion
Into Substance Use Disorder Treatment: The Economic Impact of California’s Proposition 36 103.6 (2013): n. pag. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 9 Oct. 2015.
Arkin, Daniel. "Exploding Number of Elderly Prisoners Strains System, Taxpayers." NBC News. U.S. News, 29 June 2013. Web. 9 Nov.
2015.
Carson, Ann E., and William J. Sabol. "Prisoners in 2011." (n.d.): n. pag. Bureau of Justice Statistics. U.S. Department of Justice, Dec. 2012.
Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
Grattet, Ryken, and Joseph Hayes. "California's Changing Prison Population." (PPIC Publication). N.p., Apr. 2015. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
"Incarceration In Georgia | Black Law Offices, LLC." Black Law Offices. N.p., 2015. Web. 12
Nov. 2015.
Jones, Joshua A. "Assessing the Impact of "Three Strikes" Laws on Crime Rates and Prison Populations in California and Washington."
Student Pulse. N.p., 2012. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
Lee, Connor. "The Murder of George Thomas - History Atlanta." History Atlanta. N.p., 26 Oct. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
McCarthy, Kevin E. "RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON WASHINGTON STATE’S "THREE STRIKES" LAW." RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ON
WASHINGTON STATE’S "THREE STRIKES" LAW. ORL Research Report, 08 Jan. 2009. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
Pettys, Dick. "Governor: Two-strikes Law Changes Currently on Hold." Online Athens. N.p., 4 Jan. 2005. Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
"The Price of Prisons: What Incarceration Costs Taxpayers." VERA Institute of Justice (n.d.): n. pag. 20 July 2012. Web. 6 Nov. 2015.
"Prison Populations and State Incarceration Rate Data." GOVERNING: The States and Localities. N.p., 2015. Web. 7 Nov. 2015.
"Proposition 36: Drug Treatment Instead of Jail." Shouse Law. Law Lytics, 2015. Web. 9 Nov. 2015.
"PUBLIC SAFETY & COST IMPLICATIONS OF LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE." Washington’s Three Strikes Law (n.d.): n. pag. Columbia Legal
Services. Web. 8 Nov. 2015.
"Recovery First." Review / Rating. Recovery.org, 2015. Web. 20 Nov. 2015.
Schrager, Allison. "In America, Mass Incarceration Has Caused More Crime than It’s Prevented." Quartz. N.p., 22 July 2015. Web. 14 Nov.
2015.
"Statistics, Trends and Data on Substance Abuse and Treatment in Georgia - Black Bear Lodge." Black Bear Lodge. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Nov.
2015.
"Taft Community Correction Facility Could Open Because of Prison Overcrowding." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 17 Nov. 2015.