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I agree with you, specially the segment about your son and treatment. They do not have enough personnel to offer programs in the prisons, and why send an inmate at minimum security institution to a bigger prison where the real criminals, hard core criminal and reside with them where he might not even to get his name at the top of the list, he will be released without the program or treatment, but they have to experience living with the real criminals? Yes, jail is a "wasted time", burden to the State's budget, offered Measure 57 to the voters it won, and for what? For nothing because now they want to delay it two years? Let the non violent inmates go home and start productive lives, even with a program, it's up to individual to amend his errors and mistakes, instead of having a cruel learning experience at a large prison with killers, child molesters, etc.

posted 3 years, 12 months ago
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I voted for measure 57 because it seemed to me the lesser of the two evils. I know for a fact that in the prisons they do not have enough programs against alcohol and drugs. In my case, my son was sent to prison for violating his probation and drank beer. He does not do any drugs and he is not an every day drinker. The judge told him he could apply for "many" of the programs they have in the prisons. That is not so, they waiting lists are long and the inmate has to be transfered to a far away prison even when his name has not come up in the list. He has been incarcerated for a year and half and six more months go to. Many of the inmates where he is are not violent criminals, it's a minimum security prison and everyone works. If he refuses to get transfered to another institution, he automatically will get 18 days additional and on whose authority? The prison administration. The judge's sentence can not be changed, but why the DOC has the authority to ad more days to his sentence? They do not have enough programs, they have a long waiting list, and for what? for nothing, most likely because the name might not EVER come on the list.

The inmates at this minimum correctional are fathers, husbands, someone's son and brother, they are not violent criminal, not sex offenders, seems to me that the Judges and the probation officers act without thinking of the future of these men. However, this same judge, allowed a woman accused of murder take a one month's vacation on ANOTHER STATE after her indictment. She got 19 months in prison, for killing and stomping to death a human being, my son got 19 months for drinking beer. Let them release some of these non violent inmates, that are producing with their labor working day after day, doing laundry for the State Hospital, producing vegetables, etc. I am sure that many of these guys have learned their lessons, release them early so they can have room in the prisons for the real criminals. I hope someday they realize that mixing these men with hard core criminals, will not help them, but some will become bitter and angry, then what?

posted 4 years ago
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