Incarceration in Colorado

Incarceration rates in Colorado and the rest of the nation are at an all time high. More than one in 100 adult Americans are incarcerated. The United States leads the world in both the number and percentage of residents incarcerated. One in nine black young men are in prison. (Denver Post: Incarcerated in America, Feb. 29, 2008) Fifty percent of those released from prison are back within three years.

Much of the increase in prison populations is due to legislative changes increasing mandatory sentences and removing discretionary parole options from the Parole Board. There is no question that violent and dangerous offenders must be incarcerated. However, I support exploring alternatives to prison sentences for non-violent offenders, particularly juvenile offenders. Many offenders can be successfully supervised in the community allowing them to contribute to the economy and pay taxes while learning skills to help them lead successful and productive lives.

While I was Manager of Safety, the city implemented the electronic monitoring program allowing offenders to be in the community wearing ankle bracelets that allowed them to be supervised. These types of programs are much less expensive to administer than housing and supervising an offender in prison (approximate yearly cost of incarceration: $24,000). Spending money up front to address issues that offenders have saves money in the long run.

Substance abuse and mental health issues are often at play in criminal behavior: either someone is on a substance at the time of committing a crime or is committing the crime to get the money to pay for an illegal substance. I was on the initial planning group when the Denver Drug Court was instituted, and I fully support the Court. By keeping a hammer over the head of a drug offender and requiring frequent appearances in court, the Drug Court has been able to assist many non-violent offenders in successfully addressing their addiction needs.

The Director of the Dept. of Corrections estimates that at least 20% of the offenders need some sort of mental health treatment. That translates into several thousand. There are only 250 beds in the facility for mentally ill, San Carlos Correctional Facility. There is a glaring need for more mental health counseling and treatment in the prison system as well as substance abuse treatment. There are several good vocational training programs in the Dept. of Corrections such as the furniture and woodworking industries. DOC has the largest dairy operation in the state. Offenders are learning how to train dogs and often they assist local communities with cleanup efforts or farmers with harvesting crops. I support the expansion of these types of programs.