Sunday, July 13, 2014

What Walker Hath Wrought


Secretive system keeps parole-eligible inmates behind bars. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 7/12/2014)

Corrections as a growth industry.  Wisconsin's prison population has tripled since 1990, increasing from about 7,000 to more than 22,000. The amount spent on corrections rose 620% through 2012, not accounting for inflation. The corrections budget for 2013-'15 is $2.54 billion. 

In Wisconsin, truth in sentencing eliminated the possibility of parole for anyone whose crime occurred on or after Dec. 31, 1999. Under the law, among the toughest in the nation, all prisoners must serve every day of the sentence imposed by a judge. Unlike many other states, which reserve truth in sentencing for serious offenses, Wisconsin's law applies to all crimes, not just violent ones. Inmates get no credit for good behavior. 

Walker authored the legislation when he served in the Assembly.

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