Is the Budget Crisis Changing the Way We Look at Sentencing and Incarceration?

• NCJ Number: 196510
• Author(s): Daniel F. Wilhelm; Nicholas R. Turner
• Date Published: June 2002
• Length: 12 pages
• Corporate Author: Vera Institute of Justice
• Sale Source: Vera Institute of Justice; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Downloaded August 22, 2002

Annotation

This document explores the issues of budget crunches and changed public attitudes about crime and incarceration.

Abstract

Lawmakers have been looking to slow corrections spending as they contend with the Nation's most serious economic downturn in a decade. Prison closings, layoffs, and eliminating "nonessential" programs do not address the broader issue of how to better manage a State's fiscal resources. Some States have re-examined sentencing schemes, resulting in the repeal of mandatory minimum sentences and the reclassification of certain offenses. Public attitudes about incarceration have changed from favoring harsher penalties to addressing the root causes of crime. Several States have recognized the importance of creating governmental organizations to take up the challenge. North Carolina, Virginia, and Kansas have made substantive changes to laws governing sentencing and incarceration. They have developed tools to manage their corrections growth and to connect sentencing policy with available resources. A sentencing commission is central to this accomplishment in all three States. The sentencing commission serves a range of functions, including correcting unwarranted disparity in sentencing; ensuring greater consistency and truthfulness; and promoting better resource management. In North Carolina, the commission built an extensive database containing information on offenders, their criminal histories, their sentences, the time they were expected to serve, and other important characteristics. Kansas has a unique provision that involves an early warning system to reduce prison population. Virginia's sentencing commission requires that fiscal notes or impact statements be attached to every bill that would change sentencing law. Virginia also implements a nonviolent offender risk assessment to divert offenders to alternative sanctions. For all States, there is a need for a sentencing commission to estimate the impact of changes, monitor and report on the effects of sentencing practices, and coordinate correctional resources. 3 figures, 27 footnotes