Corrections Costs
States Missing Out on Millions in Medicaid for Prisoners
Dr. David Mathis examines a prison inmate in California. Medicaid pays most hospitalization and nursing home care costs for prison inmates but few states or counties take advantage of it. (AP) (CORRECTION 6/26/2013: The option of Medicaid does NOT extend to patients in mental institutions. Those references have been deleted) Only a dozen states have taken […]
With Governor’s Signature, New Jersey Expands Drug Courts
Governor Chris Christie signed a bill Thursday (July 19) that expands New Jersey’s drug court program and mandates treatment rather than jail time for drug abusers convicted of non-violent crimes. That makes New Jersey the first state to require drug treatment for certain offenders. For months, the governor has championed the bill, which the legislature […]
Study Finds Disparity in Corrections Spending
States spend seven times more money on prisons than on probation and parole, even though the vast majority of the 7.3 million people now under correctional supervision are not behind bars, according to the first detailed survey of state corrections spending since 2002. Counting offenders on probation and parole, one in 31 U.S. adults is […]
Calif. legislators looking out for stars behind bars
Somebody has to look out for celebrities. In the wake of media frenzy over Paris Hilton’s jail term, lawmakers are considering a bill to make it illegal for law enforcement or court employees to profit from leaked photos of people in custody or confidential information, according to the Los Angeles Times . News associations say […]
Inmates Gladly Take on Odd Jobs for Low or No Pay
Prison work programs help local communities, save states millions, and give inmates who are mostly nonviolent offenders something worthwhile to do. From Oregon’s Bland Mountain to Georgia’s Walker County, at least 14 states have inmate crews to fight wildfires. One of the country’s largest programs is in California , where 4,200 volunteer inmates none convicted […]
National Reforms Needed to Help Inmates Return Home
“Nearly 650,000 people will be released from prison this year, and 7 million will be released from jails. Every policymaker should be concerned about the public safety and fiscal implications of these extraordinary numbers,” Timothy Ryan, chief of the Orange County, Florida Corrections Department, and past president of the American Jail Association, said in a […]
Nursery Program Aids Jailed Moms in Four States
A small but growing number of states are using a new tool to keep women prison inmates from committing more crimes motherhood. In Ohio, Nebraska, New York and Washington, some women who give birth behind bars are allowed to keep their babies instead of giving up the child to a foster agency or a relative, […]
State Prison Costs Up 83 Percent In Six Years, Report Shows
WASHINGTON — In its first analysis of state prison expenditures since 1990, the federal government’s Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that correctional costs rose from billion in 1990 to billion in 1996, an 83 percent increase. The state prison population rose 52 percent during the same time period. On a per capita basis, it cost […]