Fayette County must help prison inmates
The Herald-Standard first published a series of videos online documenting problems with the current state of the Fayette County Jail 26 months ago.
Prison overcrowding, the poor working conditions for correction officers, and looming financial liabilities are all addressed. While the aforementioned issues certainly need to be remedied, it likely can’t be fixed until a new facility is built. Building a new jail is, and will remain, at the epicenter of resolving most of the issues. However, a lack of programming for our incarcerated, above all else, is a can that can’t be kicked down the road anymore.
The county appears ready to acquire new land for supplemental prison use. Much to the taxpayers chagrin, it is carrying a $0 price-tag. County Commissioner Vince Vicities hinted that the new property could potentially be used for classrooms and programming. I strongly encourage and endorse the facility be used in this capacity! Though it is just an incremental step in the progress that ultimately needs to be made, helping inmates obtain their GED and developing programs to assist inmates with drug addictions will likely reduce recidivism and the financial obligation to the county.
People that serve time in our jail without a high school diploma or GED are further burdened upon release with a criminal record. This makes it remarkably difficult to find a job in order to pay court ordered fines and restitution. A 2013 study by the RAND Corporation found that employment after release was 13 percemt higher among inmates that took part in either academic or vocational education programs than those who did not. Participants of vocational training are 28 percent more likely to find employment than those who did not receive any training.
Did you ever have a weed in your flower bed, and no matter how many times you pull the green leafy part on the surface, it’s back a few days later? You don’t need to be a criminologist to know Fayette County has a drug problem. You can read the crime briefs daily and see there is always a plethora of drug cases. A countywide arrest sweep for drug activity makes for a sexy headline, but what does it really do to solve the problem? It may temporarily disrupt activity. Some may turn into informants. Ultimately, the low-level drug dealers will be replaced and they too will end up in the criminal justice system. We are pretty good at pulling the weed on the surface, but the root of the problem will always be the drug users.
In the videos published by the Herald Standard, the warden of the jail admits that inmates sentenced to time there will either become a better criminal or rehabilitate themselves. The overcrowded prison makes programming such as Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous difficult to schedule. Thus, giving our non-violent drug users only one viable path to go down – becoming a better criminal. Under the current circumstances, offenders introduced into the criminal justice system here are not likely to get the programming they need until they are sentenced to a state facility (or recycled through the system enough times to be sent to a state prison). Substance abuse programs at the county level for drug users can begin to control the bleeding.
The same loud dissenting voices that halted a new jail will likely rise again and demand that the new facility be turned into additional housing to address overcrowding. These are but empty thoughts. They lack humility and substance. They’ll pound their chest and wave the petitions of their baseless agenda. This is not a liberal/conservative debate. This is about our community and the people in it.
The reality of it all is that non-violent offenders are going to be released. They will be living among us again. They are fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, son and daughters. They are our neighbors, friends, classmates, and colleagues. We will drive on the same roads and shop at the same stores. They don’t deserve to be thrown behind the paint chipped bars of the old jail and forgotten about. I ask the commissioners, why not help? Why not leave a legacy to be proud of? Why not stand on the right side of history? Why not turn tax burdens into tax payers? They need help. It is our duty as a society to help.
Bryce Connors is a resident of New Salem.