cannabisnews.com: Record 6.47 Million Adults in Corrections System Record 6.47 Million Adults in Corrections System Posted by FoM on August 27, 2001 at 11:51:45 PT By The Associated Press Source: Washington Post The number of adults behind bars, on parole or on probation reached a record 6.47 million in 2000 -- or one in 32 American adults, the government reported yesterday. On the positive side, the percentage increase from 1999 was half the average annual rate since 1990.Jails and prisons held 30 percent of the adults in the corrections system, or 1,933,503. People on probation accounted for 59 percent of the total, or 3,839,532. An additional 725,527 adults were on parole, a period of supervision after release from prison. Over the past two decades, the number of adults in the corrections system has tripled. They make up 3.1 percent of the country's adult population, compared with 1 percent in 1980, said Allen J. Beck, a chief researcher with the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics."It's just overwhelming," said Kara Gotsch, a spokeswoman for the American Civil Liberties Union's National Prison Project, which advocates alternatives to incarceration. "It just shows that we need to put much more into prevention."During the 1990s, the corrections population increased 49 percent. By the end of last year, there were 2.1 million more adults in the system than there were in 1990.The rate of growth was 2 percent between 1999 and 2000, compared with an average of 4 percent during the 1990s. Beck attributed the slowing growth to the cumulative effect of a drop in crime rates that began in the 1990s."This could be the beginning of a peak," said James Alan Fox, a criminal justice professor at Northeastern University in Boston.Nearly 2.5 million people were released from parole or probation in 2000. Among parolees, half successfully completed the terms of their release in 1990. By 2000, 43 percent completed parole and stayed out through the end of the year.Among those released from community supervision in 2000, 15 percent of probationers and 42 percent of parolees were sent back to prison or jail that year for new violations. Fox said that figure underestimates the large number of probationers and parolees who will probably be convicted again.Beck noted that the number of Americans who have returned to prison has remained stable over time.To Gotsch, that shows the shortsightedness of corrections policies that focus more on punishment and less on rehabilitation."It's no wonder that they're re-offending at incredibly high rates, because we don't teach them anything else," she said.The report also showed:• Among those on probation, 52 percent were convicted of felonies, the most frequent of which was driving under the influence, followed by drug offenses.• The percentage of women in the prison population, as well as their percentages among probationers and parolees, rose.• The states with the largest percentage of their adult population in the corrections system were Georgia, 6.8 percent, and Texas, 5 percent. At the other end were West Virginia, New Hampshire and North Dakota, each with 0.9 percent.Newshawk: Jack D.Source: Washington Post (DC) Published: Monday, August 27, 2001; Page A16Copyright: 2001 The Washington Post Company Contact: letters washpost.com Website: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ Related Articles:Prison-Industrial Complex http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10730.shtmlJustice: Federal Drug Charges Rise http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10664.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #8 posted by dddd on August 29, 2001 at 00:33:40 PT What an excellent exchange One thing good about West Virginia,,,CongressmanSuet and PoisonedFor4YrsSoFar both live there...dddd [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by CongressmanSuet on August 28, 2001 at 22:46:09 PT You know, P44yrs, I like you... You try to take the positive approach. and thats good, I guess. But as the other posters here know about me, Im not what you would call a religious fanatic. And as idealistic as your suggestions are, I kinda think you might have a sheeple attitude towards life...maybe you need to really start searching, making comparisons, who knows, but just posting here means you are ripe....good luck. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by PoisonedFor4YrsSoFar on August 28, 2001 at 16:21:54 PT Hi Congressman Hi Congressman, I did not realize you lived in WVA.If Mike Wallace was giving the Governor heat the governor probably deserved it. I live in a close suburb of Washington DC.About those people in WVA turning down development to keep out the big city peopleand their crime I would have to agree with them. I think it can be a very good thing for religion to be strong in an area. True Christians/Moslems/Jews/Etc tend to be honest and kind. These institutions canprovide the kind of fabric necessary to stop more insidious organizations for becomingprevalent. I am surprised by the flag though. Its not necessarily racism though , could be pride of history mixed with insensitivity over how others would feel. I do not know too much about welfareI thought it was sort of abolished. Areyou sure WVA has a high prevalence of unusually Roly Poly people? Even so I don't think that is a bad reason to movethere. Maybe they can all really cook good! [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by CongressmanSuet on August 27, 2001 at 18:02:20 PT I know, I sound kinda harsh... I was using more emotion in that post, and didnt really clarify the situation. You make some valid points, one nazi flag does not a racist state make, maybe I should have told you about my collection of photos taken by myself and my wife of these flags flying in people's windows[we take alot of photos, because when I do move, NO ONE would believe me if Ididnt have some proof]. After hunting, the number 2 pastime is playing war with paintballs. Maybe I should have told you that among the fine people who reside here, 1/4[ in the local republican rag 2 weeks ago] are on disability, from what I remember the highest percentage of people in ANY state. It is a quite respectable manner of providing income, and I have known several healthy people who tried to get it and were turned down, and instead just had more kids to up their welfare income. That happens everywhere that there are people, just WV is king. The larger citys and towns have progressed some in the last 20 years, but those who reside in the country want no part of ANY kind of progress. It has only been 2 years that the first and only Internet Service Provider started in my region, before that I had to use long distance to get connected. I still had to do sommersaults to get thier number under a local fee arrangemnt. You say, hey, nothing wrong with some big coal interests buying the gov. some chips for a party. $250,000 worth of chips? And this after the gov. helped pushed thru legislation favoring them big time, and when confronted with it he couldnt answer Mike Wallace, "I didnt know", yeah, sure. Ive seen major projects that would have provided many jobs be nixed by local boards who are afraid of "Big city" people coming here and bringing crime with them. The people dont want to help themselves, they are quite content to get thier welfare checks, have tons of kids, and I almost forgot, we are also the most obese state, surprise, surprise. I must say, after living in numerous states during my life, this is the most impovershed Ive ever been in. Beautiful country with many proud traditions, but also quite ignorant, and seemingly proud of it.Religion rules here, there is even a snake handling church about 60 miles from me. You cant drive thru the state without noticing the hundreds of crosses put up in fields along the interstates. I mean, would a "Roadkill" bill pass the Mass. state legislature? Here it is legal to pick up recently killed animals on the side of the road and bring them home for supper. To each his own...ick. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by PoisonedFor4YrsSoFar on August 27, 2001 at 15:32:04 PT Thats not nice congressman 1) I do not agree that the income level of a group of people warrants their denigration. They may be poor because they live in an area without a lot of economic opportunity or they may be poor because they are too honest to deal with various criminal entities. I am willing to bet that a lot of those low income rural people are more honest than a huge number of rich suburban/city folk. I would prefer that type of person as a neighbor. 2) Hunting for food is honourable (even though I can not relate to it - stick to chicken if you ask me ) 3) your first two sentences were a cross between a caricature and a sterotype. 4) You are right about the economy in WVA. I have tried to get work out there - not easy. Can't get that cheap farm with no job! 5) If the last governor let somebody pay for some potato chips and stuff so what? Its not like they cut him a check. 6) I have heard they are tough on weed busts. Gilligan ( Bob Denver?) was really hassled for something like an ounce. 7) One bozo with a flag does not a racist state make. In fact I think they have a very good history of race relations. They fought with the North I think. 8) Europe is very cannabis friendly and has a low incarceration rate too. I think thats a good move to possibility [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by CongressmanSuet on August 27, 2001 at 15:04:15 PT West "My God" Virginia..... P44YRS, there is a good reason acreage in WV is cheap. Most of it is inaccesable without the standard ATV, which even the poorest of the poor seem to be able to acquire [the roof might be caving in, and it might just be time for your once every 20 year dental checkup, but you better believe that 4 wheeler comes first]. I guess there are advantages to living in number 47 out of 50 in poverty, where almost everyone is an avid poacher, I say that because Ive never met a hunter that played by the rules, and they seem kinda proud of it[deer hunting reaches a fever pitch, schools shut, most people get off from work]. There are no jobs that pay better than minimum wage[unless you are a gov. transplant for an agency or bureau, they do just fine], the competition for Federal Prison projects is fierce, The last governor was humiliated on "60 Minutes" being unable to explain why reps. of the coal industry paid for his inauguration party. I have a friend who has worked in the school system for 18 years, and he makes alittle over 10 bucks an hour, and he considers himself VERY fortunate. What other state starts the police salarys at about 50 cents over the minimum wage? I know a town of under 3000 people who have 2 drug dogs and a 60,000 "drug and bomb" sniffing machine that has in 4 years never helped in an arrest[I think they dont know where the on button is] and they still do car check points, but they say they are looking for "stolen weapons". And, Im sorry to say, these people are some of the most racist Ive ever met. Just a few weeks ago I passed a roadside stand selling flags, t-shirts, etc, nothing unusual except for the fact that some of the flags were Nazi Swastika adaptations of the Confederate flag...still want to live here? [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by PoisonedFor4YrsSoFar on August 27, 2001 at 12:35:46 PT west virginia has lowest incarberation rate West Viriginia is supposedto have a fairly nonfascist type of citizenry ( nice people ). It is supposed to be a great place to live too.Acreage is CHEAP! [ Post Comment ] Post Comment