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| Op-Ed: ‘Yes’ on amendment for prison work |
| By The News Tribune |
| Published: 10/24/2007 |
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WASHINGTON STATE - If any one of the statewide measures on the Nov. 6 ballot could be considered a “no-brainer,” it’s SJR 8212, which would allow inmates to participate in private work programs inside the state’s prisons. This is what successful rehabilitation is all about. Giving inmates useful, productive jobs not only teaches good work habits but also makes them more employable upon release. There wouldn’t be any argument about this at all – and any need for SJR 8212 – if it weren’t for a screwy state Supreme Court decision in 2004 that said privately contracted inmate work programs were unconstitutional. That 5-to-4 ruling, which reversed a 5-to-4 ruling the previous year upholding such programs, turned on an overly literal interpretation of a longstanding constitutional ban on forced prison labor. Regardless of its merits, the second ruling closed down highly successful work programs like Inside-Out Inc., which produced clothing and accessories at the Washington Corrections Center for Women at Purdy. Read more. If link has expired, check the website of the article's original news source. |
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