tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post1780219310455218296..comments2024-02-16T09:00:32.845-06:00Comments on FromDC2Iowa: Prisons: The Costs and Challenges of CrimeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post-15834664394205765782012-10-23T20:14:56.601-05:002012-10-23T20:14:56.601-05:00You, the United States Justice System and Social W...You, the United States Justice System and Social Wellfare system, you rightly claim to help many poor and oppressed. But, if, by your very system you misunderstand-and-oppress even one soul, then your own system is partly in error. Even your system of punishment-by-ward you take for granted as righteous. So, you impute to the ill-effects of that ward a justice which it does not have, thus making those ill-effects unnecessarily worse for those held captive in it to whom you otherwise minister.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post-46497410942002654622012-10-23T11:13:42.903-05:002012-10-23T11:13:42.903-05:00Jail inmates fall into two natural sets: a) those ...Jail inmates fall into two natural sets: a) those held less than one week and b) those held from one week to about 100 weeks.<br /><br />The average bed use by the first set is about 26 and that amount of bed use has not changed for years. We have a jail designed for 46 beds that can easily serve the needs of that set of inmates.<br /><br />The average bed use by the second set of inmates averaged 132 in FY 2012. That bed usage have been growing for years. Prior to 2001 the rate of increase was 3.2 beds used peer year and after 2001 the rate of increase was 6.3 beds used per year. The average rate of increase for 1983 to 2012 was 4.2 beds used per year.<br /><br />To meet our current needs we need 26 beds for the first set and 132 beds for the second set and we need to provide for future growth in the bed usage by the second set. The present designed sized 46 bed jail cannot be expanded to meet the current needs so it is obvious that a new larger facility is needed.<br /><br />Can some of the second set be housed in other county jails? Of course that is what we are doing now.<br /><br />Is that a good option? Not for pretrial detainees. Maybe for sentenced inmates but if you do that the judges will immediately put all sentenced inmates in<br />jail instead of placing them on a waiting list and that will increase the cost of operating the jail. OTOH prompt punishment is supposed to be more effective so that might justify the additional cost.<br />John Neffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post-72795554978441845122012-10-18T18:38:51.226-05:002012-10-18T18:38:51.226-05:00There are 1,464 counties in mainland China, far le...There are 1,464 counties in mainland China, far less than in the States.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counties_of_the_People's_Republic_of_ChinaRobust Hannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post-85256395115625887972012-10-16T10:39:44.245-05:002012-10-16T10:39:44.245-05:00There are people that are sentenced to serve two a...There are people that are sentenced to serve two and seven day jail sentences that report to the jail after being placed on a waiting list. They could have served their sentence without waiting in another county jail. From a corrections point of view prompt punishment is thought to be most effective but for a cost point of view the waiting list is the best choice.<br /><br />Most people enter jail as pretrial detainees and at some point become sentenced prisoners that are released upon expiration of sentence. The booking data does not record when the pretrial stage ends so it is not possible to figure how that part of the process influences jail bed usage. In the case of multiple charges there could be multiple times for the end of the pretrial stage. <br /><br />The jail staff have become very good at managing the jail population so they may already placing sentenced prisoners in other county jails.<br />John Neffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post-47347454201260815742012-10-16T06:50:57.014-05:002012-10-16T06:50:57.014-05:00Thank you, John, for that helpful addition.
John ...Thank you, John, for that helpful addition.<br /><br />John Neff is one of the most knowledgeable persons I know when it comes to prison policy.<br /><br />On this occasion, I think we're in basic agreement.<br /><br />I'm not advocating that regional jails <b><i>substitute for</i></b> county jails, or that they be used for inmates awaiting trials and conferences with their attorneys.<br /><br />I'm only asking for a further rationalizing of the balance between in-county and out-of-county incarceration -- our current equivalent of "regional jails."<br /><br />Rather than 99 counties building jails of sufficient size that each county will <b><i>never</i></b> need to place inmates out of county, isn't there some way of thinking about in-county and out-of-county incarceration that might, for example, concentrate on keeping in-county those awaiting trial, while placing out-of-county those serving relatively longer sentences? Shouldn't we view rational utilization of available space elsewhere as a blessing rather than a curse?<br /><br />I'm taking others' word for the assertion we need additional jail cells (and courtrooms) in Johnson County. The remaining question is: "How many?" And the answer to that turns, at least in part, on the answers to the questions/analysis above.<br /><br />John Neff and I also agree, as noted in the op ed column, regarding the political impossibility (at this time) of rationalizing the number of county governments in Iowa.<br /><br />This is no longer a state dependent upon horse-and-buggy transportation (aside from the Amish) along the muddy, unpaved roads of my youth. Relatively high-speed cars and trucks (and private planes), traveling along Interstates and paved farm-to-market roads, make something like 25 "county" governments much more sensible than the 99 we have today.Nickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08467682953748756539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30130444.post-25675160597664122032012-10-15T11:12:50.307-05:002012-10-15T11:12:50.307-05:00Several years ago the National Institute of Correc...Several years ago the National Institute of Corrections did a short study about why there were so few regional jails. <br /><br />What they found out was that the counties all had to have intake facilities to book and hold persons arrested until initial appearance before a judge or magistrate. They also had to spend money transporting inmates for court appearances and attorney conferences. In addition there was more or less continuous conflict between counties about fair apportionment of costs.<br /><br />If you had a single joint courthouse-jail facility at the intersection of four counties that would save money but LOL on solving the political problems of making that happen.John Neffnoreply@blogger.com