IOWA PRISON DIRECTOR ARGUES FOR SENTENCING-LAW CHANGES

Prison time served by criminals classified as nonviolent and
convicted of the least serious felonies in Iowa rose sharply in the
past decade, state records show.

The average time served behind bars for nonviolent Class C felonies
increased by 50 percent, from one year and four months in prison to
two years. This includes crimes such as first-degree theft,
second-degree burglary and delivering drugs. Prison stays for people
convicted of nonviolent Class D felonies, such as forgery,
third-offense drunken driving and delivery of marijuana, have
increased by 60 percent. Since 1993, the average prison term rose
from 10 months to 16 months.

Iowa Corrections Director W.L. "Kip" Kautzky cited the findings of
state criminal-justice researchers last week as he argued for changes
in Iowa's criminal-sentencing laws.

Each inmate costs Iowa taxpayers $19,771 a year. Kautzky contends the
prison system is being overused in an era when state lawmakers are
having trouble finding money for education, health care and other
programs.

Sixty percent of Iowa inmates are in prison for nonviolent offenses,
Kautzky said.

The Iowa Board of Parole decided nine months ago to shorten prison
stays for some inmates, said board Chairwoman Elizabeth
Robinson-Ford, but the number of prisoners still hovers around 8,000
because admissions have remained extremely high - almost 500
offenders per month. The prison population has soared over the past
decade because of several factors, including tougher sentencing laws
and a crackdown on drug crimes.

"They are coming in so fast that we just can't do it," Robinson-Ford
said. "We just can't open the door and let everybody out."

Kautzky wants lawmakers to do even more by making distinctions
between violent and nonviolent crimes, although one legislator
disagrees.

Under current law, people convicted of Class C felonies are ordered
to serve up to 10 years in prison, regardless of whether the crime
was violent. All Class D felons receive a prison term of up to five
years behind bars.

A shorter sentence for nonviolent crimes and a longer sentence for
"crimes against persons" would be more appropriate, Kautzky said. He
favors reducing nonviolent Class C felonies to a term of up to seven
years and decreasing nonviolent Class D felonies to a sentence of up
to three years.

Sentence reductions would probably shorten the amount of time an
inmate stays in prison before being paroled. About one in four
inmates finishes his or her sentence without parole.

"This would have the net effect of reducing the prison population by
500 fewer offenders in the second year it was implemented," Kautzky
said. "By the ninth year, you would actually have 835 fewer inmates."

Kautzky also favors giving judges discretion to review cases of
inmates convicted of certain violent crimes who must now serve at
least 85 percent of their sentences. Such reviews could result in
inmates serving less prison time while remaining in community
corrections programs, he said.

Rep. Charles Larson Jr., a Cedar Rapids Republican who is chairman of
the Iowa House Judiciary Committee, said he is wary of changing
criminal-sentencing laws to shorten prison stays.

"Under the director's definitions," Larson said of Kautzky, "a
methamphetamine dealer who sells meth to a 15-year-old would be
classified as nonviolent. I disagree with that adamantly. Those are
some of the most dangerous people."

The large majority of Iowa's inmates - about 87 percent - are
eligible for parole, Larson said. Only the most dangerous convicts,
including those serving time for murder and other crimes with
mandatory prison terms, are ineligible, he said.

"This is a management issue," Larson said. Most inmates aren't
paroled because Kautzky's staff doesn't believe they can be safely
released, he said.

"The parole board approves an estimated 90 percent of the Department
of Corrections' recommendations for parole, so clearly those that we
have in prison have earned their way into prison and should remain in
prison until they are deemed to be safe," Larson said.

However, Robinson-Ford, the parole board chairwoman, said she
strongly advocates changes in sentencing laws. She particularly
supports changes to grant probation to more offenders or to assign
them to community corrections facilities rather than prison. The
problem, she said, is that once people are sent to prison, they can't
be freed until they've gone through a series of formal steps, often
including treatment and education programs.

"The parole board expects certain things, the public expects certain
things and the judge expects certain things," she said.

The Iowa House passed a criminal-sentencing bill earlier this year
that includes tougher penalties for dealing the drug ecstasy, as well
as other changes that would have an uncertain impact on the prison
population. Sen. Gene Maddox, a Clive Republican who heads the state
Senate Judiciary Committee, said sentencing issues are now in the
hands of legislative leaders. He doesn't expect significant changes
to be approved this year.

"I am disappointed that we are not doing more, but my sense is that
the House judiciary chair just does not want to do any meaningful
sentencing reform," Maddox said about Larson.

Because of Iowa's prison population growth, Robinson-Ford said the
parole board revised its policies about nine months ago to shorten
prison stays for some inmates.

Nonviolent people convicted of Class C felonies can now be considered
for parole after about one year and three months in prison, she said.
Nonviolent Class D felons can be considered for parole after about
71/2 months, she said.