Pubdate: Fri, 21 Nov 2003
Source: Courier-Journal, The (KY)
Copyright: 2003 The Courier-Journal
Contact:  http://www.courier-journal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/97
Author: Fred Kelly

INDIANA PRISON CROWDING IS CALLED WORST IN DECADES

State officials say crowding in Indiana's 24 prisons has reached levels not 
seen in decades, potentially forcing them to place bunks in prison 
classrooms and recreation areas.

"This is the worst crowding we've faced in at least 40 years," said 
Department of Correction spokeswoman Pam Pattison.

Larry Landis, a member of the Prison Sentencing Commission established by 
the General Assembly in August, goes even further. "This is the worst it's 
ever been," he said.

The state's 10 largest prisons are housing thousands more inmates than they 
were built to hold, according to new statistics released by the Department 
of Correction. Indiana prisons now have adequate space for about 16,000 
offenders but hold nearly 23,000.

Although prison officials say they have not yet seen an increase in 
violence, they acknowledge they are worried the crowding will escalate 
tensions among inmates and imperil staff.

The last time state prisons were as crowded was in the 1960s, when 
officials moved bunks into gymnasiums and other prison spaces, Pattison said.

Officials already have canceled inmate drug-treatment sessions and 
education training at prisons in Rockville and Putnamville because of a 
lack of teachers and classroom space.

There are waiting lists for jobs and education programs, leaving many 
inmates idle, Pattison said, and that presents a safety issue.

The state expects the adult male inmate population will grow until 2008, 
when it will reach more than 28,000. Taxpayers pay nearly $21,000 a year to 
house, clothe and feed each inmate.

Building more cells is not an option, state leaders say. The state faces an 
$810million budget deficit. Legislators already have capped the Department 
of Correction's two-year operating budget at about $1billion.

There is additional space for 2,300 inmates at prisons in New Castle and 
Miami, but the correction department lacks the $37.5million needed to 
operate the additional cells.

The combination of prison crowding and the state's fiscal problems has some 
calling for easing penalties for certain drug offenses. Mandatory drug 
sentences and other anti-crime measures have swelled prison populations in 
Indiana and throughout the country, said Landis, executive director of the 
Indiana Public Defender Council.

A person found carrying three grams of cocaine in Indiana faces up to 20 
years in prison, Landis said. One gram of cocaine is the size of a packet 
of sugar. "That is more time than someone would get if they broke into a 
house and raped a woman," Landis said.

Legislators say they hope to address the issue in the full legislative 
session that starts in January. Steps could include allowing judges more 
flexibility in sentencing and letting more inmates enter work-release programs.

"We are going to have to do more community corrections, because this is 
something we just can't build our way out of," said Rep. William Crawford, 
D-Indianapolis, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

There's a political risk of appearing soft on crime, acknowledged Senate 
President Pro Tem Robert Garton, R-Columbus. But he said the issue should 
be considered.

"It's time to look at the (mandatory) sentences (for certain crimes), 
because that is causing a lot of your prison buildup," Garton said.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens