[Winona Online Democracy] I don't believe jails work to rehabilitate or deter. They do protect us from the criminal. Most people in jail now are not there to protect us. Some who we need to be protected from are released. I don't pretend to have a solution. But first we have to understand the problem and our own motivations. Judge Peterson said we don't want to pay for prisons. I disagree. We, as a society, do want to pay for prisons to keep the riff raff out of sight and out of mind. It doesn't really matter that it does nothing to reduce crime. We need to reduce the incentives to keep the Courts busy, the attorneys busy and the jails full. We are afraid we might lose a Judge position if the cases going to Court go down, we want to justify the number of attorneys prosecuting and the number providing public defense, the State Dept. of Corrections likes prisons, the Sheriffs each want their own jail in each county so it can be run by them and not share. These incentives all cost too much and push the system in a direction that exacerbates the problem of not being able to reduce crime. Community based treatment, prevention, early intervention, deterrence, diversion, treat mental illness, treat chemical dependency, electronic monitoring, restorative justice are all examples. I don't pretend to know all the possibilities. We need incentives to use such methods and not the disincentives than now exist. I do know the simple one that makes us all more comfortable is jail and it does not work and it costs too much - especially in the long run. A few simple ideas -- law enforcement should get credit for the diversions they do and not just the arrests; same for prosecutors in terms of going to court vs. diversion methods; Courts could get credit for such things as diversion being counted in the 'caseload' used to determine how many judges a county gets; money could be diverted to treatment from jails; the state could fund community based services at a higher rate than jails; etc. Pogo went into the world to look for the enemy and found that it was "us". I think that is the case here. "Out of sight, out of mind" works for me -- I just wish someone else would pay for it.
Craig Brooks _______________________________________________ This message was posted to Winona Online Democracy All messages must be signed by the senders actual name. No commercial solicitations are allowed on this list. To manage your subscription or view the message archives, please visit http://mapnp.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/winona Any problems or suggestions can be directed to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] If you want help on how to contact elected officials, go to the Contact page at http://www.winonaonlinedemocracy.org
