Political Courage

Much has recently been made of the impending budget battle looming in Congress. This week, in between breaking news from Libya, the news focused on budget struggles in Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, New York and California. As I write this, the Virginia General Assembly is reviewing its own budget. The current legislative session is set to expire tomorrow. We live in an age where economic realities demand politicians speak the truth and show courage. Unfortunately, truth and courage are in short supply.



Consider that two relatively conservative bills were introduced in this year’s Virginia General Assembly that would have potentially changed the total sentence served by some inmates. Under Virginia’s current draconian “No parole” sentencing system, the maximum good time days an inmate can earn is 4.5 days a month, or 85% of the total imposed sentence.


One bill introduced and voted down in committee would have increased good time earning to 10 days per month for those inmates (1) exhibiting good behavior and (2) actively participating in education, vocation and rehabilitation programs. That would have decreased possible sentence length to 65% for those inmates actually trying to rehabilitate. A compromise bill increasing good time earning days to 7½ (75% of sentence length) under the same criteria also failed even as the bill’s sponsor showed no adverse budget effect, and annual prison bed savings over the next five fiscal years.


But, it is easier for politicians to talk about “keeping criminals off the streets” and wasting billions each year incarcerating more citizens with no lessening in recidivism rates and continuing cut backs in prison treatment programs.


As I wrote last week, one courageous politician may actually exist in Virginia. Republican Congressman Frank Wolf recently held the “National Summit on Justice Reinvestment and Public Safety”. I share with you some of the statements from that report:


“The number of individuals incarcerated or under supervision is high, and states generally bear excessive costs related to this population.”


“Despite the money expended, in many states the problems of incarceration and recidivism are getting worse, not better.”


Cost effective corrections policies “start with identifying those individuals likely to pose the greatest risk to public safety.”


“Policies that rely on simply building more and more prisons to address community safety concerns are not sustainable.”


As Congressman Wolf’s summit concluded, the system is broken. The public isn’t being kept safe. Recidivism isn’t decreasing (in fact the rate has remained unchanged) and costs are dramatically increasing.


There are currently 2.3 million people incarcerated. Another 5.1 million are under supervisory probation or parole. The United States leads the world in the number of people incarcerated and the rate of incarceration. We may be falling against the world in student achievement, health care, and infant mortality; but at least we’re number one in something.


One in every fourteen disciplinary dollars is spent on corrections. Only Medicaid spending has grown faster than corrections as a proportion of state spending. As U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder recently stated “we must recognize that incarceration alone does not provide the entire solution. Simply building more prisons and jails will not solve all of our problems.”


Eventually, a few honest, courageous politicians will step forward and tell the truth. Sentencing must change. Those who break the law must be held responsible. I needed to be sent to prison. I deserved incarceration for stealing. But, the punishment must be commensurate with the crime.


The prison system is collapsing under its own weight. Some enlightened Governors and Legislators are doing the right thing (South Carolina, Indiana and Mississippi, for example) and re-engineering sentencing and corrections. Governor McDonnell and DOC Director Clarke can lead the Commonwealth of Virginia toward a new view of corrections. They must show courage. For me, and thousands of other inmates who are doing their sentences properly, change can’t some soon enough.