Pubdate: Sun, 27 Apr 2003 Source: Clarion-Ledger, The (MS) Copyright: 2003 The Clarion-Ledger Contact: http://www.clarionledger.com/about/letters.html Website: http://www.clarionledger.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/805 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration) PRISONS: OVERCROWDING FEARS REAR AGAIN During an election year, the last thing state lawmakers want to deal with are fears of state prison overcrowding (again), dredging up the "soft on crime" epithet. Yet, latest figures show Mississippi's prison population is close to capacity. As of April 6, The Associated Press reports, there were 5,648 inmates in the State Penitentiary at Parchman (which has a capacity of 5,711), and growing. Systemwide, the state inmate population has grown from 19,206 in June, 2002, to 20,143. With a Department of Corrections budget deficit of about $60 million next year, the last thing lawmakers want to confront is building more prisons. They don't want to be tapped with the "soft on crime" tag either. But, if the system can just hold on, though, help may be on the way. In the 2003 session just ended, lawmakers approved Senate Bill 2605 to establish statewide standards for drug courts, which Gov. Ronnie Musgrove signed into law last week. The sooner they are established, the better. The bill was boosted when State Auditor Phil Bryant calculated that just 500 participants could save the state up to $5.4 million annually. Not only would fewer inmates be incarcerated, saving prison costs, the courts' alternate sentencing also treat the problem in a failsafe way: If drug and alcohol abusers aren't rehabilitated, they are imprisoned. Once fully up and running, the potential cost savings (in dollars and lives) is incalculable because drugs and alcohol are believed involved in more than 70 percent of crimes. At least a third of the prison population - 6,000 or more - is serving time involving drug and/or alcohol offenses. With drug courts, with prisons, it's only a matter of time. Crime-fighting Jacksonians must work with police Among the city's five-point plan to fight Jackson crime is increasing cooperation between police and citizens. Police Chief Robert Moore met with The Clarion-Ledger Editorial Board on Tuesday to outline the plan. Over the past few days, we have been examining each of the five points, and will review them in coming weeks. To Moore, Point 4: Community and Business Involvement," or community policing, is the heart and bedrock to effective crime-fighting. He's not the first to see that. In May 1999, the Maple/Linder independent study of the Jackson Police Department gave community policing as essential to fighting crime in Jackson. That means enlisting citizens to act in partnership with law enforcement. Even with all the other Maple/Linder suggestions, which Moore is working to implement, including more modern equipment, better street strategies, even hiring hundreds of more officers, crime-fighting cannot be effective without active community help and support. Moore in the five-point plan intends by May 5 to create a Community Policing Task Force. Beginning June 1, and continuing through September, he intends to train city department heads and key community members regarding what they can do to foster cooperation. This will then extend to training in each precinct for local government, business and community leaders. Specifically, he wants to implement a "problem-solving process" to define "roles for all participants" in addressing and preventing crime; develop a list of "quality of life" conditions that need addressing, like overgrown lots, run-down buildings in each precinct; and develop intervention strategies for crime-inducing situations, such as school drop-outs, drug abuse and domestic disturbances. His overall goal is to "incorporate community policing into the culture of JPD and the community, creating a partnership to identify and effectively address problems of crime, disorder and quality of life." Moore intends to use JPD's new technology, such as the ComStat (computerized record-keeping) system, to track crimes and make that information available to citizens. This, with good, old human face-to-face "interfacing," could prove the most important key to success. For community policing to work, Jackson citizens need frank assessments and detailed information. The department's crime analysis should be publicly disseminated so citizens can react and - more important - have a realistic, ongoing perception of the city's crime. Moore is working to change the culture JPD with the five-point plan to solve long-term problems and make crime-fighting more citizen friendly. Public confidence is earned by openness and action. It's the "glue," if you will. More crime information would help solve the realities - and perceptions - of crime in Jackson, to make community policing ingrained and crime-fighting effective. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh