Pubdate: Mon, 04 Aug 2003
Source: Greenville News (SC)
Copyright: 2003 The Greenville News
Contact:  http://greenvillenews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/877
Author: Andy Paras
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?199 (Mandatory Minimum Sentencing)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration)

PRISONS CHIEF URGES REFORM OF SENTENCING

Finding an alternative way to sentence nonviolent criminals would have the 
largest and safest impact on reducing the growing state prison population, 
according to Jon Ozmint, director of the state Department of Corrections. 
Ozmint The state's prisons are at their capacity of 23,500 inmates and have 
grown 5 percent - a rate of 1,200 prisoners a year, Ozmint said. Meanwhile, 
budgets have been cut $72 million in the last three years.

Ozmint said the best way to reduce the population is to target the 48 
percent of the state's inmates who are in for nonviolent offenses and have 
no record of committing a violent crime by giving judges an alternative 
sentence to consider.

He said the state needs to find better ways to use "expensive bed space, 
and we need to do it in the safest manner possible. I think the safest 
manner possible is to look at the nonviolent offenders."

Many blame the statewide and national population increase on mandatory 
minimum sentencing laws.

Several cash-strapped states across the country have made changes to reduce 
the number of offenders eligible for mandatory minimums, said Ryan King, 
research associate for the Sentencing Project, a nonprofit organization 
that promotes alternatives to prison.

"Longer sentences are the primary engine of growth in the state prison 
population," King said. "That's something we need to address in the future 
if we're really concerned about reducing the prison size."

Rep. Bill Cotty, R-Richland, agreed that changes need to be made.

"The truth is there's a very large number of people in our prisons there 
for bad checks, failure to pay child support and simple possession of 
drugs," he said. "And all of those inmates are not paying taxes. They could 
be on a work program with a bracelet on their ankle."

Cotty said there's a political problem that needs to be addressed on a 
bipartisan level.

"Politically, no one wants to step up and say, 'Don't send these people to 
prison,'" Cotty said. "That sounds like you're soft on crime. It will take 
political leadership to say, 'Wait a minute, maybe we need a little bit of 
flexibility.'"

House Speaker David Wilkins said the state's primary obligation is to keep 
violent criminals in prison, even if it means building more prisons. He 
said he agrees to look at options for nonviolent criminals.

"There's many of us who agree with Jon Ozmint on that, and he agrees with 
us," he said. "You lock the violent criminals up and you find alternative 
ways (to punish) your nonviolent offenders."

Wilkins, however, said no one has proven to him that mandatory minimum 
sentences have increased the prison population.

Ozmint said mandatory minimum sentences create a management control 
problem. "You can't offer inmates incentives for good behavior," he said. 
"Society not only works with sticks but with carrots. If a guy goes to 
class or shows up for work every day we should be able to award him."

Thirteenth Circuit Solicitor Bob Ariail said he believes the concept of 
mandatory minimum sentences works the way it was intended: keeping violent 
offenders off the streets longer.

Ariail said he generally supports the idea of alternative sentencing for 
nonviolent criminals. "As they say, however, the devil is in the details," 
he said. "You have to get their attention."

Ozmint said he is working with Gov. Mark Sanford's office on a possible 
proposal for alternative sentencing but declined to give details. He said 
it should be a system in which everyone involved - victims, judges, 
attorneys - would have input whether the offender is eligible.

"I think that offers the safest potential for looking on the front-end at 
the possibility of having alternative sentences for them as opposed to 
putting them in prison," Ozmint said. "Maybe give them a taste of prison 
and then allowing them, on the back end, to have the opportunity to get out 
and be on electronic monitoring."

Rep. Joe Neal, D-Richland County, is working on legislation that would 
include mandatory drug treatment for nonviolent drug offenders that is 
expected to be considered next year.

He has said the state can't afford to spend millions of dollars on 
incarceration and that the state would see a substantial savings on 
treatment. Neal's plan is similar to one passed in California.

Local law enforcement leaders said they support the drug court that 
Ariail's office runs in Greenville County. The program is designed for 
habitual drug offenders with no history of violent crime.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom