Several observations (in this post) suggest that the role of legislative enactments in the state prison population increase was limited. Non-legislative factors that could explain the rise include, of course, the stunning rise in crime itself and discretionary responses to that rise by communities, law enforcement and the courts. However, parole board release decisions do not seem to be a likely factor.
The Massachusetts Legislature regularly enacts criminal penalty increases.
Legislators respond with the tools that they have to public concerns and to troubling events. One can see, in the list of major criminal law enactments in this post, the history of punitive responses to recurring waves of legitimate public concern about drunk driving, drugs, guns, domestic violence, youth violence, sex offenses and crimes against the elderly.
Incarceration in Massachusetts started to climb after crime surged.
From the early 1960s through about 1990, crime rose dramatically in Massachusetts. Most categories of crime have fallen since the early 1990s, but remain above their level in 1965. However, the state prison population has remained elevated, as the chart in this post (indexed to 1965 levels) demonstrates.
MA Legislature passes FY16 state budget
We share this press release from the Senate President’s office on the passage of the Fiscal Year 2016 Budget as enacted by H3650. You may also view Conference Committee Highlights and Conference Summary budget graphics.
Rethinking tough-on-crime
CommonWealth Magazine’s summer 2015 cover story on criminal justice policy reform by executive editor Michael Jonas, focuses in on the debate over repealing mandatory minimum sentences, which is one aspect of Senator Brownsberger’s legislative priority to reduce the footprint of the criminal justice system and to help make it easier for people to get back on their feet. As reported in the piece, “Sen. Will Brownsberger, who co-chairs the Legislature’s Joint Committee on the Judiciary, thinks the state should pull back the entire “footprint” of the criminal justice system, not only the length of many prison sentences but also various sanctions and fees that hit people once they’re out of prison. Rather than help ease offenders back toward productive pursuits, Brownsberger says, these often seem more like tripwires setting ex-prisoners up to fail.”
Bowker Overpass Construction Schedule
MassDOT has provided an updated construction schedule for the work that is currently underway on the Bowker Overpass. Please read this post to see the plans for each stage of construction on the project.