EARLY PAROLES POSSIBLE IN MISS. BUDGET CRUNCH

Also, Legislation Would
Allow More To Earn Their Freedom

The economic squeeze on the Mississippi Department of Corrections
means hundreds of nonviolent inmates could see fewer days behind bars.

MDOC Commissioner Chris Epps said he has asked the state Parole Board
to review the files of some 2,100 inmates who have been denied parole.

"I recommended to the governor that, in my view, we should have the
parole board relook at these individuals," Epps said.

He estimated that about 25 percent - or 525 inmates - could earn
parole on a second look for a savings of about $1.5 million before the
fiscal year ends June 30.

Epps also is backing legislation moving through the Legislature that
would allow drug offenders, excluding traffickers, to earn 30 days off
their sentence per month for every equal day they participate in a
work, rehabilitation or education program.

He said granting 30-for-30 trusty time to drug offenders could net
savings as high as $8 million from this March through 2013. Other
nonviolent offenders are already eligible.

The department estimates that nearly 1,000 inmates serving time for
drug charges could go home early in the next three years if the bill
passes.

A face-off between Democratic House leaders and Republican Gov. Haley
Barbour over how much to spend on prisons has made the MDOC budget one
of the most highly politicized of the session.

But these latest moves by Epps to pare the nonviolent prison
population underscore the complexity of a debate that often is
oversimplified.

Both of these efforts are expected to advance regardless of how the
budget battle shakes out.

Shannon Warnock, chairman of the Mississippi Parole Board, said
members already have begun reviewing the denied parole requests.

"Our mindset is we will make an attempt to parole offenders who are
ready for release, prepared to be successful in society and do not
pose a threat to public safety," she said.

Warnock said individuals could have been denied parole for a variety
of reasons. In many cases, she said, inmates are told they will be
reconsidered if they participate in a GED, vocational training or
alcohol and drug program.

The board will consider letting some of those inmates go a few months
earlier if they are participating as directed, she said.

Many of the inmates that come before the parole board are incarcerated
for shoplifting, forgery and grand larceny, she said. Most are
first-time offenders.

She said members have not faced any political pressure to parole a
certain number of inmates. The five-member board is appointed by the
governor and confirmed by the Senate.

MDOC's budget has been cut $29.4 million this fiscal year, which ends
in June.

Democratic House leaders want to restore less to MDOC's budget than
Barbour says is necessary and pump more money into public schools.

Democratic lawmakers are circulating a memo that shows per-inmate
spending tripled between 1995 and 2009, while per-pupil state spending
doubled.

MDOC's budget has grown, but much of that is credited to the
truth-in-sentencing law enacted in 1995 requiring all inmates -
violent and nonviolent - to serve 85 percent of their sentence.

The state has been slowly chipping away at that law when it comes to
nonviolent prisoners.

Epps said there are about 3,500 inmates serving time for selling,
manufacturing or manufacturing with the intent to sell drugs that may
be eligible for so-called trusty time under Senate Bill 2912.

The 30-for-30 trusty time program was extended to most nonviolent
prisoners in 2004, but drug offenders were excluded.

"This is the latest of the rollbacks," said Ron Welch, the prisoners'
rights attorney who represents Mississippi inmates.

The legislation overwhelmingly passed the Senate and House on initial
votes, and Barbour said recently that he supports the concept.

But the debate isn't over.

Rep. Kevin McGee held the bill for reconsideration this
week.

McGee, R-Brandon, said some lawmakers want to exclude dealers and
other repeat offenders.

"There's some of us who feel like we don't want to let drug dealers
out until they've served their time," McGee said.

Epps said doing so would water down the legislation so much that the
savings might not be worth it.

Currently, most drug offenders are required to serve at least 25
percent of their sentence before they are parole-eligible.

That means a person sentenced to 20 years for selling drugs would have
to serve at least five years before being able to seek parole.

Under the legislation, if that inmate can earn trusty time, his
sentence could be cut to 10 years if the inmate does not make parole
before that.

Dealers convicted for being within 25 feet of a school, church, park
or movie theater cannot be paroled.