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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>Here is how my view on the Idaho prison situation is coming along. Thanks
to everyone who has contributed to my edification on this subject so far. Please
don’t be hesitant to redirect my understanding. All contributions are
very much welcomed.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>My opinion so far is we have to ante up the additional funds the
Department of Correction is asking for the 2006 budget. We have to do this
simply because we are imprisoning people we have decided to so we have to take
care of their needs while they are so imprisoned. This is a case of “we
made the bed…now we have to lie on it”. I have been convinced that
correction personnel need the perks (for prisoners) in order to maintain order
in the prisons. A very good carrot vs. stick analogy was used to sway me to
this way of thinking; “if you take away all of the carrots”, what
is left to shape prisoner behavior is not going to be pretty.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>So the bottom line so far for fiscal year budgeting seems to me is that
the Department of Corrections is operating within a reasonable budget but needs
the additional funds to maintain the same level of operational success with the
increased prison population.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>On the 160 million requested to build more prisons I am not convinced
that that is what Idahoans want. I have been convinced (so far) that what we
want is an elimination of mandatory sentencing so that mitigating circumstances
can be used by the court system to keep low-risk offenders out of the prisons.
I have been convinced that if we put additional monies into anything it should
be drug courts and rehabilitation. Keeping the low-risk offenders out of prison
reduces the direct cost of housing them and gives the offenders a chance to
redeem themselves by remaining productive citizens. </span></font></p>
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font-family:Arial'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'> </span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>James Reynolds</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>1424 Borah ave.</span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Moscow</span></font></p>
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