OVERCROWDING

The Alabama criminal justice system has continued to pump offenders into
state prisons as if the jail cells could just expand to meet the demand.
The prison population now sits at a staggering 190 percent of capacity.
Alabama Corrections Commissioner Mike Haley says the source of the
overcrowding are inconsistent and harsh sentencing guidelines. But while
so-called "law and order" legislators have continued to hand down those
guidelines and mandatory minimums, they have made no accommodations for the
resulting boom in prisoners. The overflow prisoners end up sitting in
county jails, packed tighter than dogs at a kennel. The state then pays the
counties $1.75 a dayfor housing the inmates - nowhere near the actual cost
of $26 a day.

Who pays the difference?

You do, in the form of high sales and gas taxes, as Calhoun County cannot
levy any other kind of tax. The reason for this, as we all know, is our
pitiful state constitution of 1901. It not only ensures that the state
doesn't have enough money to build prisons, it also ensures that the state
can't pay the counties when they take on the responsibility.

The overcrowding has its hidden costs as well. It makes recidivism more
likely because inmates don't receive the treatment and training they need
to function in society.

The sheriff's office must devote 60 percent of its budget to the county
jail - money that could be used for more patrols and more officers to
prevent crimes from happening in the first place.

The overcrowding leads to an inmate-to-jailer ratio of 90:1, which,
according to Calhoun County Sheriff Larry Amerson, creates a dangerous
situation for the deputies and is ripe for a riot or outbreak. As with many
of Alabama's problems, change can only come with constitutional and tax
reform. The state ranks dead last in per-inmate spending. In the words of
Calhoun County Administrator Ken Joiner: "I can't fathom why we can't wake
up and realize the services are needed, and until we change some things
constitution-wise and legislative-wise, we're never going to get out of
this hole."