January 24, 2012

ACLU ANALYZES PUBLIC SAFETY REFORMS 

I just finished reading a 60-page report by the American Civil Liberties Union, dated August 2011, and titled, "Smart Reform is Possible."  The premise is that states can reduce incarceration rates and costs while protecting communities.  

The report carefully analyzes the bipartisan criminal justice reforms that have taken place in Texas, Kansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Ohio.  It then goes on to analyze reform efforts in process in four states:  namely, California, Louisiana, Maryland, and Indiana.  As I finished reading the detailed analysis, four observations stood out to me. 

1. Oregon has already done most of the described "successful" reforms.

 

2. None of these successful reforms involved shortening sentences for violent offenders.

 

3. The enacted reforms save money by managing drug and non-violent offenders in the community or letting them out of prison on parole.

 

4.  There appears to be no rigorous cost-benefit evaluation of these reforms.

Fortunately, these cost-benefit evaluations are becoming more common following the lead of the Washington Institute for Public Policy. The Oregon Criminal Justice Commission economist, Michael Wilson, has updated and further developed this analysis capability for Oregon.  

>>>Read More

January 10, 2012

STATE REP. CHRIS GARRETT FAVORS LOCKING UP VIOLENT OFFENDERS

On January 5, 2012, State Representative Chris Garrett wrote a Guest Opinion in the Portland Tribune with the title, "Make Smarter Use of Tax Dollars."  He was referring to his work on the Governor's Commission on Public Safety and their recommendation to revise Oregon's sentencing guidelines. Initially, I was worried he was advocating for shorter sentences for violent offenders and repeat property offenders until I read the following words from paragraph three of his guest opinion: 

       "The drop in Oregon’s crime rate since 1995 is among the largest in the nation, and this is in part because we are doing a better job locking up violent and repeat offenders for longer periods of time.  That is something that should not and will not change." >>> Read More

December 30, 2011

District Attorneys Michael D. Schrunk, Robert W. Hermann, and John S. Foote respond to the report of the Governor's Commission on Public Safety.  These experienced district attorneys say in the first page of their response: 

"...our primary disagreement with this process is that the most basic conclusion of this Commission appears to have been established before Commission members were even selected.  The Governor’s charge to the Commission, pointedly, was that “the Commission on Public Safety shall develop recommendations for comprehensive sentencing reform.” Taken off the table from the outset by the Governor unfortunately was any debate about whether “comprehensive sentencing reform” was actually even necessary in Oregon. In a state where much of the sentencing structure for violent crime has been the result of direct voter participation, we believe this constitutes a mandate to a public body to simply brush aside the will of the people of this state." 

>>>Read More

December 27, 2011

MAX WILLIAMS RESIGNS

Max Williams, Director of the Department of Corrections, will be leaving his position at the end of this year to become the head of the Oregon Community Foundation.  Congratulations to Max, and we wish him much success as he oversees a billion dollars in assets and guides an organization that donates about $60 million a year.  During Director Williams' tenure at the Department of Corrections, new prisons have been constructed (Oregon now has 14 prisons and about 14,000 inmates) and successfully operated.  More than that, Max led an effort to rehabilitate offenders while in prison and create opportunities for them when they reenter society.  Preliminary data shows that pilot reentry programs significantly reduce recidivism.  Max should be proud of his accomplishments and the people he led that made it happen day in and day out. >>>Read More

The Governor's Commission on Public Safety is scheduled to issue its report on December 15, 2011, and the Governor's Executive Order expires on December 31, 2011.   After holding four all-day meetings around the state, (I attended all of them and made a presentation with the president of Crime Victims United at the last one) listening to planned presentations and public testimony, it is clear that the Commission is not in a position to do anything except stop meeting or continue reviewing the Oregon Public Safety System.  The Commission did not ..."collect, review, and evaluate arrest, conviction, sentencing and recidivism data as required by the Executive Order” nor did they "...collect, review, and evaluate data related to the costs of Oregon's current sentencing policy."  Although the Commission members spent considerable time listening to presentations, the task was simply too large for the five-month timeframe.  In addition, law enforcement members on the Commission such as a District Attorney and/or a Sheriff were noticeably lacking. Also missing was a practicing criminal defense attorney. I expect a new expanded Commission will replace the old one, and 2012 will be a busy year for them. >>>Read More

Prison Transition Essay

LeaAnne Eivers

     My name is LeaAnne, I am a mother, a student, a convicted felon and now I am your neighbor. Two years ago I made a mistake and was sentenced to prison for 19 months. When I made the very bad choice to embezzle money from my employer, the most I thought I would lose was my job. In no way did I understand the consequences of my actions and in no way did I realize the loss I suffered was not only mine, but my family’s, friend’s and the community’s as well.

     Navigating through life can be a daunting process as I found as the divorced mother of two daughters. The turmoil of everyday life can be a challenge in the best of circumstances. But the path is made even more difficult when you are transitioning from prison back into the community. Because the difficulties were caused by my own doing only made it more formidable. I never thought I would commit a serious crime let alone spend time in prison. The punishment didn’t end the day I was released. The problems I faced after I got out wee one’s I hadn’t anticipated. The stigma attached to a felony conviction is hard to overcome. At first I felt everyone could see I was a criminal. Simple things like renewing a driver’s license or re-opening a checking account became a series of lengthy and embarrassing explanations. Although I have a college degree and years of work experience behind me, the minute I check the felony box on a job application means I will probably be turned down. >>>Read More

Lane County District Attorney, Alex Gardner, wrote an excellent op-ed for the Eugene Register Guard explaining the benefits of Ballot Measure 11's mandatory minimum sentences for violent offenders. It is printed below.

GUEST VIEWPOINT: As promised, Measure 11 makes Oregon safer place to live

By Alex Gardner

Published: Sunday, Mar 27, 2011 04:25AM

Measure 11 was a 1994 citizen-initiated ballot measure that created new mandatory minimum sentences for the most heinous violent crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, sodomy, arson, sex abuse and kidnapping.

Legislative inaction had left Oregon with a terrible violent crime problem, dwindling law enforcement resources, grossly inadequate prison capacity and sentencing laws that were dishonest and ineffective at protecting Oregonians.

In 1993, the violent crime rate in Oregon ranked among the worst 10 states in the nation, and the felony sentencing structure was among the most lenient. At that time, a “life” sentence for murder typically meant less than nine years in prison, a forcible rape conviction could net less than three years, and a man convicted of sexually abusing a 4-year-old could avoid prison entirely if a judge found sufficiently compelling reasons to allow probation. >>>Read More

Last week the Senate Judiciary Committee held a public hearing on proposed Senate Joint Resolution 15.  The Resolution would modify the purposes for the punishment of crime to include the negative statement, "May not be founded on the principle of vindictive justice."   Of course, there is no place for vindictiveness in our justice system, and the existing principles for the punishment of crime do NOT include vindictiveness. 

 Lewis and Clark Law Professor Douglas E. Beloof summarized all the reasons for opposition to the Joint Resolution in his written testimony. >>>Read more

The Criminal Justice Commission just released a study on the application of Measure 11, since it was passed overwhelmingly by the voters in 1994.  They did not consult with me about the study, although I authored the initiatve measure and have been active in criminal justice issues as a legislator and Oregon citizen.  I thought my views on the Criminal Justice Commission's report might be of interest to others. >>>Read more