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| Lawmaker Wants to Prohibit Early Release of Sex Offenders |
| By ctnewsjunkie.com - Hugh McQuaid |
| Published: 01/10/2012 |
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With the 2012 legislative session set to begin next month, a freshman lawmaker said he will attempt to repeal part of the prisoner early release program passed last year. Rep. Dan Carter, R- Bethel, said he plans to propose legislation to make sex offenders ineligible for the new Earned Risk Reduction Credit program. Under the initiative, inmates can earn credits to shave up to five days a month off their prison sentences by participating in programs designed to ease their transitions back into society and reduce the likelihood they will commit the crime again. Credits have been applied to 1,376 inmates since the program began in October, according to the most recent statistics from the Office of Policy and Management. Carter said it was a mistake to include sex offenders and violent criminals in the program. “Last spring residents of this state watched majority legislators put the public at risk just to save a buck,” Carter said. “They allowed the unthinkable: letting convicted sex offenders out of prison early, instead of pursuing structural budgetary changes that would produce meaningful and measurable savings.” Michael Lawlor, the governor’s top criminal justice adviser, said Carter’s efforts are misguided. The purpose of the program is to reduce crime in Connecticut, he said. Typically, sex offenders serve their entire prison sentences and do not get parole, Lawlor said Monday. That means the state’s ability to supervise them after they are released is limited, he said. It also means they have no incentive while they are incarcerated to undergo treatment that could make them less likely to offend again, he said. “What’s in it for them if they are not going to get parole?” he asked. The credits provide that incentive, Lawlor said. But Carter questioned the effectiveness of the state’s treatment programs. “I think most people will agree that sex offenders, in particular, pose a significant risk to the community—especially when there are legitimate concerns about the state’s ability rehabilitate them,” he said. Read More. |
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