Pennsylvania
Articles
05/29/2011 – Pennlive.com: “John Wetzel, new secretary of corrections, wants to change the way Pennsylvania handles prisons”, by Donald Gilliland
““It’s one of the biggest changes we’ve seen in decades,” said Ann Schwartzman, policy director for the Pennsylvania Prison Society. “The Department of Corrections is rethinking prisons as we know them.””
05/01/2008 – Lancaster Online: “Recidivism: The Point of No Return”, by Jeff Hawkes
“Pennsylvania will spend $1.6 billion this year to incarcerate 46,000 inmates, about 4,400 more than its 27 prisons were meant to handle.”
02/29/2008 – The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “1 in Every 100 Americans in Jail”, by Moriah Balingit
“Pennsylvania had the largest prison population growth in the Northeast last year, part of a national trend of proliferating prison populations in which more than one in 100 American adults now is incarcerated, according to a study released yesterday by the Pew Center’s Public Safety Performance Project.”
09/06/2007 – Altoona Mirror: “Explore Sentencing Alternatives,”
“Gov. Ed Rendell and state associations representing district attorneys and county commissioners want state lawmakers to consider proposals that would allow for shorter sentences or for alternative programs that focus on rehabilitation.”
7/01/2007 – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “New Initiative Tackles Prison Overcrowding”, by Paula Reed Ward
“With the report last week that the number of people imprisoned in this country has reached an all-time high, Pennsylvania is no exception.
The state’s inmate population has grown 21 percent in the past seven years, and on May 31 stood at 45,505.”
4/23/2007 – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: “No Black and White Answers in Graying of State Prisons,”
“Across the country, prisons house more elderly inmates than ever before. Pennsylvania incarcerated a record 606 inmates ages 65 or older in 2006, up from fewer than 200 in 1990, according to the state Department of Corrections.”
12/29/2006 – Pittsburgh Tribune Review: “County Jail Population Nears Capacity,” by Bobby Kerlik
“With the Allegheny County Jail nearing capacity, judges and county officials are relying more on alternative housing and home detention to reduce the inmate population and save taxpayers money.”