Pubdate: Sat, 01 Feb 2003
Source: Tennessean, The (TN)
Copyright: 2003 The Tennessean
Contact:  http://www.tennessean.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/447

PRISON POLICY SHOULD NOT BE ONLY BRICKS, MORTAR

Tennessee's new governor shouldn't have to worry about the possibility of 
wholesale release of prisoners if his administration gets behind a sensible 
approach to corrections.

Faced with budget troubles that have convinced some governors to release 
felons early, Gov. Phil Bredesen can seek better options and likely save 
money at the same time.

One of the first decisions the governor faces is whether to build a prison 
in Weakley County recommended by former Gov. Don Sundquist. The prison 
would add as many as 1,900 beds, and a recommended addition to the Bledsoe 
County facility would add another 700-900 beds. Those recommendations would 
get Tennessee about a third of the way toward an expected demand for 7,097 
beds by 2011. In the midst of its own budget crunch, Tennessee must 
acknowledge that costly bricks and mortar aren't the only ways to a strong 
correction program.

Other states have initiated home incarcerations, strict probation 
requirements and alternative sentencing. Of course, applicants for such 
programs are carefully screened, and eligibility is usually limited to 
non-violent crimes.

Of special interest is the legislature's new enthusiasm for drug courts 
which punish and correct behavior - something Tennessee's prison system 
hasn't been able to claim for a long time. Sen. Joe Haynes said lawmakers 
are open to expanding the drug court idea which has been so admirably 
developed in Nashville by Judge Seth Norman. By redirecting first time drug 
offenders, drug courts treat one of the biggest boons to crime - addiction. 
By steering offenders into jobs, the program also aims at making former 
felons productive citizens.

Drug courts, probation programs and other alternatives cost money, but they 
remain a fraction of the $452 million a year Tennessee is paying to house 
felons. And it costs nothing to look at other options.

The new governor has been adamant that Tennessee can find ways to save 
within each department. Bredesen is a savvy enough businessman to know that 
Tennessee's prisons are not cost-effective. He doesn't have to empty out 
cells; he needs to make better use of them.
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart