Pennsylvania this week became the latest state to start sending prisoners out of state to ease overcrowding. Gov. Ed Rendell signed off on a plan to send away 2,000 prisoners starting January 1, and officials said some of them will end up in Michigan’s empty cells.
Here are two states headed in opposite directions on criminal justice reform. Michigan’s incarceration rate is ninth in the U.S., but the state’s leaders are changing that by expanding parole opportunities for nonviolent prisoners and engaging in innovative alternative to incarceration programs. In 2007, Michigan’s prison population shrunk by 2.4% while Pennsylvania’s grew by 3.7%. Rather than looking at alternatives to incarceration, Pennsylvania is shipping prisoners out of sight.
Pennsylvania’s move isn’t only a symbol of a backwards policy — it also digs the system into a deeper hole. Prisoners from Philadelphia were already spread across the western part of Pennsylvania, hours from home, limiting potential visitors and support networks. Now they’ll be moving 600 miles, to the other side of Lake Erie. Their chances at improving their life decrease as they’re moved further from their communities.
Overcrowding is a symptom of deeper problems in our criminal justice system, and states like Michigan have finally been struck with the inspiration to change incarceration policies at their root, rather than dealing with crowding after the fact. I wrote this week about a proposal to repeal some mandatory minimum sentences in Massachusetts, another budget-driven initiative that will address incarceration rates rather than turning a blind eye until they get out of hand. It’s time for Pennsylvania to look at holistic solutions, too.
Image by bbsrock, via wikipedia.
