The Michigan Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal made by the state in a lawsuit filed by former teen inmates alleging the Department of Corrections didn’t do enough to prevent them from being raped.
Michigan Department of Corrections
Posted inMichigan Government
ID gap makes streets meaner for ex-cons
GRAND RAPIDS — Jeff Lowery figured it was going to be a tough road as he left state prison in late February, hoping to find work and housing. But without proper identification, he feared it would be impossible: “There is nothing you can do. It’s absolutely horrible.” Six months before was discharged, Lowery said, he […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
Guest column: Prison savings to reach $250 million
By Daniel Heyns/Michigan Department of Corrections I know for the past several years the Center for Michigan has been an active participant in the dialogue surrounding lowering corrections costs in Michigan. The Center facilitated the creation of the Corrections Reform Coalition — a collection of business, education, local government and nonprofit groups focused on enhancing […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Guard knows danger lurks inside prison walls, but still loves his job
Five weeks into his new job as a corrections officer at a state prison, Robert McGaffigan received a horrific lesson on the dangers of the work. Tammy Sperle was a civilian worker who operated the prison store at what was then the Huron Valley Men’s Facility when an inmate angry about losing his job there […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Pew study says Michigan spends cash it doesn't have to on prisons
Michigan almost doubled the average time behind bars for its prisoners between 1990 and 2009, says a new study by the Pew Center on the States released Wednesday. While the trend mirrored a national one, Michigan’s practices on longer incarceration for all types of crimes was particularly notable, and expensive, the report’s authors stated. “The […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Cost of '4 strikes' plan drops, still means millions more for prisons
When Attorney General Bill Schuette first proposed his “4 strikes and you’re out” plan for repeat felons, the Michigan Department of Corrections said the additional costs to the prison system could exceed $1 billion per year by the middle of the 21st century. New calculations by the department, incorporated into a Senate Fiscal Agency analysis, […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Guest column: Real truth in sentencing could save really big prison dollars
By Richard Stapleton/Citizens Alliance on Prisons and Public Spending Ultimately, the least expensive prisoner is one who isn’t there. While the prison population has dropped by about 8,000 over the last five years, the Michigan Department of Corrections’ projections anticipate no further decline. But the projections assume the status quo on policies. Those assumptions can […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Senate panel backs prison cuts
A month ago, CFM President John Bebow urged the Senate subcommittee overseeing prison spending to take pruning shears to the governor’s proposal for 2013 to spend about $2 billion on the Michigan Department of Corrections. “(C)ontinued re-engineering of the prison system in Michigan is another chapter in the theme of Reinventing Michigan,” Bebow told the […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Guest column: Cut prison costs the smart way
By Barbara R. Levine/Citizens Alliance on Prisons and Public Spending Legislators agree we should spend less on corrections, but are reluctant to make the fundamental choices — like reinstating the sentencing commission, reforming parole practices and restoring sentencing credits — that could safely reduce the prisoner population by thousands and reduce spending by the hundreds of […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Of cons and condiments: Prisons cut costs in dimes and dollars
The state Department of Corrections will cut back on patrols outside its prison walls and change the job classifications of some corrections officers next month to save an estimated $25 million a year. But the head of the union representing the nearly 8,000 corrections officers complained those moves could make the prisons less safe, while […]
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