California Sunshine
04-28-2005, 03:01 PM
http://www.baxterbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050427/NEWS01/504270338/1002
Area judicial and law enforcement authorities will have another alternative to sending some nonviolent offenders to prison in a pilot program starting May 1.
If someone convicted of a felony fails to follow all the conditions set on them for probation, judges have few alternatives — place them in a possibly overcrowded jail; send them to prison, probably not merited; or put additional conditions on them. Benny Magness, who heads the Board of Corrections, said at a press conference Tuesday the new program will allow judges to put the offender to work for the county in the Circuit Court of Baxter, Marion, Boone and. eventually Newton, counties with the county judge's approval.
Magness implemented former Baxter County Judge Joe Bodenhamer's idea for the program.
Circuit and county judges, prosecutors, community corrections and other law enforcement officials will meet again in a year to assess the program, which eventually could be used throughout the state.
The governor had charged the Board of Corrections and the Department of Community Corrections to try to find alternative sentencing and sanctions for offenders that would not only give them sanctions but also give back to the public, without costing the taxpayers money, Magness said.
Magness asked Bodenhamer, who is now with the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management, to attend the press conference.
The idea for the program came to Bodenhamer while he was taking a course that required him to write a paper on ways to save money at whatever job he was in.
"I have always been a big proponent of working these guys," said Bodenhamer. "We had three prisoner work programs going then, and the problem I saw was that they were in jail, and it was costing us $35 or $45 a day to keep them," Bodenhamer said. "I thought if we could bypass them being in jail, it would save us that much money plus give us some labor."
Bodenhamer thinks it will be successful locally and could wind up saving all 75 counties money if it goes statewide.
"I know in my own mind there is a lot of money to be saved," Bodenhamer said. "If you have eight prisoners and don't have to spend $45 a day to house them for 30, 60 or 90 days, and you multiply that by 75 counties, it is not going to balance the budget, but it is not going to hurt the budget either. I am just glad that Benny went ahead and kept pursuing this and worked as hard as he had on it. I think a year from now we are going to look back on this program and be tickled to death."
An example of someone who might be put to work for the county is someone convicted of a felony such as commercial burglary who, instead of going to an overcrowded prison, is put on probation with conditions including one that he stay away from alcohol, Magness said. Alcohol might have been one of the reasons he committed the crime. If he keeps coming in contact with law enforcement officials because he cannot stay away from alcohol, a judge's options aside from putting them on probation again, which does not seem to work, would be placing them in jail, or sending them to prison, said Magness
Now they will have an option of sending them to work for the counties at the road and bridge departments through the Department of Community Corrections rather than jailing them.
"So, it gives some kind of sanction to that offender, that he knows he is going to have to live by those probation rules or he is not going to get just sent back out on the street with just more probation," Magness said.
It would be useful in other situations that do not merit jail or prison, such as contempt charges, Prosecuting Attorney Ron Kincade said.
"So often we have contempt charges that are not subject to going to the penitentiary, but may be subject to going to jail for 30 days," he said. "It seems a lot more productive to put them to work for the county so we don't have to pay to feed them and clothe them and house them on a per day cost. This costs the county nothing and, as a matter of fact, they actually do something productive. That seems to be a lot more productive than letting them take up jail space in the county jail."
Although Baxter County's new jail is not overcrowded, they have issues in Boone, Marion and Newton counties, which also is true across the state, he added.
"That is an advantage," said Kincade. "Both judges will tell you there are times when they would like to put somebody in jail but they know that particular facility is crowded. I think it will work to the benefit of the judicial system, as well as the county."
"I am confident we will use this program because since we have been talking about it, I have had three or four cases that I would like to have used it in," Circuit Judge John Putman said.
Magness said it was not meant to take the place of community service, another sanction. It would be different. With community service, the offender usually works in the evenings or on weekends with a nonprofit agency, working around the offender's time. With this program, the county judge will be able to count on the coordinator ensuring the offenders are there to work at the time more convenient for the public, thus becoming more of a punishment and sanction.
Area judicial and law enforcement authorities will have another alternative to sending some nonviolent offenders to prison in a pilot program starting May 1.
If someone convicted of a felony fails to follow all the conditions set on them for probation, judges have few alternatives — place them in a possibly overcrowded jail; send them to prison, probably not merited; or put additional conditions on them. Benny Magness, who heads the Board of Corrections, said at a press conference Tuesday the new program will allow judges to put the offender to work for the county in the Circuit Court of Baxter, Marion, Boone and. eventually Newton, counties with the county judge's approval.
Magness implemented former Baxter County Judge Joe Bodenhamer's idea for the program.
Circuit and county judges, prosecutors, community corrections and other law enforcement officials will meet again in a year to assess the program, which eventually could be used throughout the state.
The governor had charged the Board of Corrections and the Department of Community Corrections to try to find alternative sentencing and sanctions for offenders that would not only give them sanctions but also give back to the public, without costing the taxpayers money, Magness said.
Magness asked Bodenhamer, who is now with the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management, to attend the press conference.
The idea for the program came to Bodenhamer while he was taking a course that required him to write a paper on ways to save money at whatever job he was in.
"I have always been a big proponent of working these guys," said Bodenhamer. "We had three prisoner work programs going then, and the problem I saw was that they were in jail, and it was costing us $35 or $45 a day to keep them," Bodenhamer said. "I thought if we could bypass them being in jail, it would save us that much money plus give us some labor."
Bodenhamer thinks it will be successful locally and could wind up saving all 75 counties money if it goes statewide.
"I know in my own mind there is a lot of money to be saved," Bodenhamer said. "If you have eight prisoners and don't have to spend $45 a day to house them for 30, 60 or 90 days, and you multiply that by 75 counties, it is not going to balance the budget, but it is not going to hurt the budget either. I am just glad that Benny went ahead and kept pursuing this and worked as hard as he had on it. I think a year from now we are going to look back on this program and be tickled to death."
An example of someone who might be put to work for the county is someone convicted of a felony such as commercial burglary who, instead of going to an overcrowded prison, is put on probation with conditions including one that he stay away from alcohol, Magness said. Alcohol might have been one of the reasons he committed the crime. If he keeps coming in contact with law enforcement officials because he cannot stay away from alcohol, a judge's options aside from putting them on probation again, which does not seem to work, would be placing them in jail, or sending them to prison, said Magness
Now they will have an option of sending them to work for the counties at the road and bridge departments through the Department of Community Corrections rather than jailing them.
"So, it gives some kind of sanction to that offender, that he knows he is going to have to live by those probation rules or he is not going to get just sent back out on the street with just more probation," Magness said.
It would be useful in other situations that do not merit jail or prison, such as contempt charges, Prosecuting Attorney Ron Kincade said.
"So often we have contempt charges that are not subject to going to the penitentiary, but may be subject to going to jail for 30 days," he said. "It seems a lot more productive to put them to work for the county so we don't have to pay to feed them and clothe them and house them on a per day cost. This costs the county nothing and, as a matter of fact, they actually do something productive. That seems to be a lot more productive than letting them take up jail space in the county jail."
Although Baxter County's new jail is not overcrowded, they have issues in Boone, Marion and Newton counties, which also is true across the state, he added.
"That is an advantage," said Kincade. "Both judges will tell you there are times when they would like to put somebody in jail but they know that particular facility is crowded. I think it will work to the benefit of the judicial system, as well as the county."
"I am confident we will use this program because since we have been talking about it, I have had three or four cases that I would like to have used it in," Circuit Judge John Putman said.
Magness said it was not meant to take the place of community service, another sanction. It would be different. With community service, the offender usually works in the evenings or on weekends with a nonprofit agency, working around the offender's time. With this program, the county judge will be able to count on the coordinator ensuring the offenders are there to work at the time more convenient for the public, thus becoming more of a punishment and sanction.