PRISON PAROLE PROGRAM BETTER THAN ALTERNATIVES

A billion dollars is a lot of money. Sometimes we tend to forget that when
we hear the government toss large numbers around. Millions, billions and
trillions all seem to blend together and the numbers are meaningless unless
you don't have the cash when you need it.

Alabama's in that position now with our prison system. The latest
statistics show that this state needs $934 million to build enough space
for the current prison population.

That amount is close enough to call it a billion, because by the time the
state can afford it, the price might be $2 billion.

Another look at statistics from a Carter-Gobel and Associates survey shows
that Alabama must be a crime-ridden state in which to live. We have the
fifth-highest incarceration rate in America, with some 584 out of every
100,000 people serving time.

That number fills the system to 188 percent of capacity.

People who commit crimes should go to prison, but the question is, for how
long? Alabama's voters let that be known in the 1990s that they wanted most
felony offenders jailed when they elected get-tough on crime politicians.
What the voters didn't consider, however, is that there's a cost that goes
with getting tough on crime.

The state prison system is doing the right thing now by trying to parole
nonviolent offenders back to the community and to the supervision of parole
officers. It's cheaper and makes room in prison for the mean guys and gals
who really need to be behind bars.

Many decry that these felons are being foisted on communities, but results
thus far are encouraging. Recidivism is low and most parolees are staying
out of trouble.

We need to back away from the "throw-away-the-key" mentality if we aren't
willing to pay to build more prisons and staff them. And, if recent votes
on taxation are any indication, most Alabamians aren't really pleased with
the idea of new taxes, even if they would keep more people behind bars.