Pubdate: Thu, 07 Sep 2006 Source: St. Petersburg Times (FL) Copyright: 2006 St. Petersburg Times Contact: http://www.sptimes.com/letters/ Website: http://www.sptimes.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/419 Author: A.P. Gibbs Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration) DON'T JAIL SO MANY OFFENDERS Your Aug. 28 editorial Dangerously crowded misses the mark. While swifter judicial action could help alleviate the crowding at the Pinellas County jail, your other prayer for more cells is misguided. What we need to do is to quit putting so many people in jail. This country has a greater percentage of people in jail than any other civilized country in the world. Most of the inmates are not violent criminals. A large percentage are in jail for drug possession and parole violation. Over half the people in federal prisons in this country are serving drug-related sentences. Many judges are coming up with alternative sentences like house arrest and community service instead of jail sentences. These judges are to be commended. However, we often have tied their hands with mandatory sentences set in law by our Legislature. I say, enough already! Let's quit putting nonviolent people in jail and quit building jails. The money could be better used to provide better schools, higher salaries for teachers and better health care for children and older adults. A.P. Gibbs, Esq. Tampa - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin