The bipartisan effort was bolstered both by the recent Supreme Court ruling against mandatory minimum sentences and a new government report showing that 70 percent of the 650,000 people released from jails and prisons annually commit new crimes during the three years following their release. Annual spending on corrections has skyrocketed in recent years, topping $60 billion in 2002, and the jail and prison population has risen from about 500,000 in 1980 to 2.2 million today.

One bill under discussion is the Second Chance Act, sponsored by Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.). "We've got a broken corrections system," said Brownback. "It needs to be reinvented, much as we found with welfare in the 1990s. Recidivism rates are too high and create too much of a financial burden on states without protecting public safety."

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, few offenders get the services they need to address problems like addiction, housing, and employment before being released. Of the 75 percent of prisoners with addiction problems, for example, just 10 percent get treatment while incarcerated. Alberto Gonzales, nominated to be attorney general by President Bush, told Congress last week: "I think that we have an obligation to provide some kind of support structure, to provide some kind of training to people that are coming out of prison. It's the right thing to do."

COMMENTS ON THIS ARTICLE:

Your Turn! Post a public comment (read guidelines):

Name:
Comment: (limit 200 words)
Enter this word (help):	Change

GUIDELINES: 
To keep this feature useful for all, please:

1. Keep it clean, courteous, and on-topic. Comments are meant for thoughtful discussion of the article published above.
   
   
2. Do not post promotional links to organizations, products or services, or personal requests for assistance (get help).
   
   
3. Proof your comments carefully, use good spelling and punctuation, and don't use ALL CAPS. Comments are published immediately and cannot be edited.

Deceptive, slanderous and commercially-motivated posts are prohibited. We reserve the right to remove comments not conforming to these guidelines. (Report a comment).

Have questions or feedback? Contact us.