SOME POINTS ON COSTS

Your instructor claims that the philosophy, goals, and practice of prisons must
be re-examined. The bottom line is that they "don't work" in an efficient or 
effect way. The following are a few of the MANY reasons on which he bases this 
judgment:

PRISONS ARE EXPENSIVE


The average time-served in Illinois is about 19 months, and the prison stay
is about 15 months.

We currently spend over $187 BILLION on law enforcement in the united states). 
(See: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/press/jeeus01pr.htm 
Of this, about $200 for every person in the U.S. goes for state and local 
corrections.

The average cost per prisoner in Illinois is estimated at about $22,627
annually. This is the TOTAL expenditures, not the the cost per institution.


                      ILLINOIS  (2003)          U.S.  (2003 (est)

Annual cost:          $1.05 Billion                $56 Billion

Cost per month:         $87 Million                $4.7 Billion

Cost per day:           $238,356                   $12.9 million

Cost per hour:          $9,931                     $537,000

Cost per minute:        $165                       $8,950

Cost per second:        $2.75                      $26.4


ASK YOURSELF: If you could decrease correctional expenditures by just TEN 
PERCENT, what could you do with the money to fight crime?
.PA
WE ARE BECOMING A CARCERAL SOCIETY

Your instructor argues that both the rate and numbers of imprisonment in our 
society are cause for concern. The facts appear to support this view.

FROM THE DEPT OF JUSTICE:
The nation's combined federal, state and local adult correctional population 
reached a new record of almost 6.9 million men and women in 2003, an increase 
of 130,700 people since December 31, 2002, the Justice Department's Bureau of
Justice Statistics (BJS) announced today.

The correctional population of 6,889,800 includes people incarcerated in 
prisons and jails as well as those on probation and parole. On June 30, 2003,
1,387,269 adults were incarcerated in federal and state prisons and 691,301 
inmates in local jails. And as of December 31, 2003, 4,073,987 adults were on 
probation - a period of supervision in the community following a conviction - 
and 774,588 on parole - a period of conditional supervised release following a
prison term.

About 3.2 percent of the nation's adult population, or 1 in every 32 adult 
residents, were incarcerated or on probation or parole in 2003. The adult 
probation population grew by 49,920 men and women, slightly less than half the 
average annual growth of 2.9 percent since 1995. The nation's parole population
grew by 23,654 men and women in 2003, or 3.1 percent, almost double the 
average annual growth of 1.7 percent since 1995.

At the end of last year, the number of adults on probation or parole reached 
a record high of more than 4.8 million, which was 70 percent of all persons 
under federal, state or local correctional supervision. More than 1 million of 
the nation's probationers and parolees were in Texas (534,260) and California 
(485,039).

As of last December 31, more than half of the probationers were white, 30 
percent were black, 12 percent were Hispanic and 2 percent were of other races.
Women comprised 23 percent of all adults on probation.

Illinois' prisoners have increased from about 17,100 in 1984 to about 43,100 
in 2004 (note: Currently, the capacity level of Illinois' adult institutions  
is under 35,000 according to IDOC).

The US leads the world in incarceration rates, with 455 (per 100,000 residents)
in prison or jail. About 25 percent of Black males between 27-30 are in prison 
or have been in prison. A young black male is far more likely to go to prison 
than to college.

THE QUESTION POSED: What can be done to reduce the prison population while 
simultaneously keeping society safe and meeting punishment goals?