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| Increasing personal protection and decreasing the number of offenders |
| By statejournal.com - Whitney Burdette |
| Published: 01/10/2012 |
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The House of Delegates Judiciary Subcommittee A approved two pieces of draft legislation Jan. 9 aimed at increasing personal protection and decreasing the number of offenders currently in state's corrections system. The Public Safety and Offender Accountability Act "is an omnibus revision of the criminal justice system," according to the bill's abstract. "The primary objective of the bill is to maintain public safety and hold offenders accountable while reducing recidivism and improving outcomes for offenders." The West Virginia Legislature has been looking at the issue of jail and prison overcrowding for some time. Jim Rubenstein, commissioner of the West Virginia Department of Corrections, and Larry Parsons, executive director of the West Virginia Regional Jail Authority, have testified before a variety of legislative interim committees on the issue. In previous testimony, both have said nearly 1,800 inmates have created a strain on already-strapped resources. Problems within the system include double-bunking, an increase in assaults and an inability to separate inmates based on classifications, among other problems. But the Public Safety and Offender Accountability Act aims to strengthen probation and parole. For example, the bill would require courts and corrections authorities to incorporate risk and needs assessment information into the decision-making process, including for pre-trial supervision, at sentencing, in evaluating parole suitability and setting terms for parole and throughout the period of probation and parole supervision. The bill also authorizes the Department of Corrections to allow offenders to complete required programming in the community while under GPS monitoring. Read More. |
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