DO MORE PRISONS MEAN LESS CRIME?

As Escambia County looks for creative ways to reduce an overcrowded jail
population, reports of a drop in the nation's crime rates to their lowest
levels in 30 years raise questions about the need to build more prisons. In
other words, do more prison cells mean less crime?

Some criminologists attribute the drop in crime to tougher prison
sentences, more prisons and to demographics, as the population is aging.
Violent crime, for example, tends to be committed mostly by young males.

Advocates of alternatives to prison say the continuing decline in crime is
a strong argument against building more prisons. The nation's jail and
prison population grew to more than 2 million last year, an all-time high.

Criminal justice experts also point to a number of factors that drive the
crime rate down, including a more mature, less violent illegal drug trade,
a drop in gang membership and even improved home locks and alarms that
deter potential burglars, while supporters of incarceration argue that the
decline is a primary result of locking up criminals for longer periods.

"Heavier punishment means fewer people choose to commit crimes, and more
criminals in prison means fewer on the streets committing crimes," said
Kent Scheidegger of the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation in Sacramento.

Whatever the reason, the Justice Department Survey found continuing
decreases in every major property and violent crime, crossing all household
income, racial and ethnic lines. Crime also is down in cities, suburbs and
rural communities.

The rate of violent crimes - rapes, robberies and assaults - was about 23
victims for every 1,000 U.S. residents 12 or older last year. That compares
with 25 victims per 1,000 in 2001 and 50 in 1993.

For property crimes such as burglary and car theft, the rate was 159 crimes
per 1,000 last year, down from 167 the previous year and 319 in 1993.

Mandating sentence lengths in the past created problems with prison
overcrowding that led to early releases. If properly administered and
supervised, early releases can help save money and reduce overcrowded jails
and prisons.

Clearly there are some people convicted of non-violent crimes who don't
need to be incarcerated. They can work or do community service from their
homes, and when properly monitored are not much of a threat to other people.

But violent criminals are better off in jail. It's been a long-held notion
that if more criminals are kept in jail for longer periods of time, crime
rates will drop. And they have.

While it is difficult to prove exactly what impact longer jail sentences
have had on the falling crime rate, there is one thing for certainty: No
criminal can commit crimes on the streets if he's locked in a prison cell.

Society is better off, our streets are safer and the crime rate is lowered
if repeat and violent offenders spend more time in prison.