| |
Legislation directing the
Department of Corrections to
address felon supervision shortcomings introduced today
House Republicans calling
on their fellow lawmakers, Gov. Christine Gregoire and the state
Department of Corrections to address the highly publicized failing felon
supervision issues, introduced House
Bill 2084 today. Rep. Kirk Pearson sponsored the bill, which
will be the subject of a rally on the Capitol Campus tomorrow.
“We have urgent public safety issues that need to be addressed now,”
said Pearson. “My bill would ensure that felons are held accountable and
the Department of Corrections has a plan in place for felon supervision
before any more are released into our communities.”
Pearson said he has tried to get answers on this specific issue from the
Department of Corrections and sent a letter on Dec. 8, 2006 to Secretary
Harold Clarke outlining his questions and concerns with felon
supervision in the state. He added that no response from the department
was sent to either him or his staff at the Legislature. And, he says,
the issue has hit critical mass with the recent deaths of innocent
victims by felons finishing their sentences outside of prison.
“Now we’re faced with families wondering what went wrong in the system
that led to the death of a loved one,” said Pearson. “Add to that the
lawsuits caused by the department’s failure, and it’s clear that
Secretary Clarke owes the Legislature and the public some answers.”
House Bill 2084 would:
-
Increase penalties for
violating conditions of release from 60 days in jail to being sent
back to prison for the rest of the original sentence.
-
Require the DOC to
perform unannounced, random inspections of offender’s homes to find
drugs, guns or other evidence of criminal activity.
- Currently the DOC can do this, but is not doing so, to the
frustration of our community corrections officers.
-
Require the DOC to
investigate and produce written reports for all crimes committed by
those under community supervision.
-
Place a freeze on
early releases until the DOC can determine how many felons they can
effectively supervise in the community and present a plan to the
Legislature for a manageable supervision program.
-
Require the DOC to
report annually to the Legislature on caseload, recidivism and any
systemic problems in the program.
At a press conference this
week, House Republicans also called for a joint hearing on this issue
with the Secretary of the Department of Corrections, the governor and
House and Senate public safety and corrections committees. Pearson said
that no hearing is scheduled yet, but in light of the urgency of the
issue, he hopes it will take place soon.
# # #
|
|