Criminal Justice Reform
One act of love can reform a system failing juvenile offenders
Originally published in The Philadelphia Inquirer Aqilah David’s journey began with an act of love. Living alone with her 10-year-old brother and 6-year-old sister — partially due to adults…
Read More: One act of love can reform a system failing juvenile offendersPennsylvania’s Justice Reinvestment Initiatives of 2012 and 2019 successfully reduced the state’s prison population while maintaining community safety. But our work is far from over. With a state recidivism rate of 41 percent, now is the time for reforms that promote reintegration into society and enable the criminal justice system to focus its resources where it counts. Pennsylvania can continue to lead the nation in powerful criminal justice reforms that preserve public safety, save taxpayer resources, and promote true rehabilitation.
Criminal Justice Reform
How YOU Benefit if Lawmakers Act on Corrections
Correcting the commonwealth’s criminal justice system is urgent. This is why Gov. Tom Corbett made it clear that he wants to see reform legislation on his desk by June…
Media
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Gov. Corbett Is Right: Real Corrections Reform, Right Now
We here at CF are proud to be part, along with Gov. George M. Leader, his family, and many others, of a transpartisan coalition favoring “real corrections reform, right…
Media
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Corrections Coalition, Dynamic Duo Dandy Says Patriot
Hats off to the Patriot-News Editorial Board for calling for an end to the status quo approach to criminal justice that has failed Pennsylvanians. Today’s editorial highlights the dynamic…
Media
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Commonsense Can Correct Corrections
Kyle, a convicted burglar sentenced to 1-3 years in Pennsylvania state prison, was granted parole in June 2011, but spent an extra 100 days in jail, not because he failed…
Commentary
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Real Corrections Reform, Right Now
Albert Einstein is said to have remarked that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. We the undersigned submit that unfortunately,…
Poll
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Correcting Corrections Correctly
Over the last 30 years, Pennsylvania’s incarceration rate has increased by 500 percent and corrections spending has skyrocketed 1,700 percent. The unprecedented prison population growth at unsustainable costs…
Media
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HOPE for PA Corrections Reform
Launched in 2004, Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE) is an innovative supervision strategy that provides swift, predictable sanctions on substance-abusing probationers. Research shows the program has reduced probationers’ positive…
Media
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Unprecedented Prison Population Growth
This is the first installment in a three-part series that will look at Pennsylvania’s correctional system, public policies that have worked in other states, and provide a blueprint to bring…
Media
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Does School Choice Reduce Crime?
Yesterday, Charles noted a key Wall Street Journal piece on a Council of Foreign Relations report. That report concluded that educational failure is dangerous for our national security and…
Media
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Saving Rather than Spending in Corrections
Last week, PCN’s Call In Program featured a great discussion with PA Corrections Sec. John Wetzel. The Secretary is committed to both saving money and improving safety by making sure…
Media
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Chart of the Day: Corrections Spending
Today’s chart highlights the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections’ skyrocketing spending since 1980. This unsustainable growth is part of the four-alarm fire that threatens Pennsylvania’s fiscal house. For more…
Media
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Nurses’ Union Opposes Corrections Reform
At yesterday’s House Appropriations Committee, Department of Corrections Sec. John Wetzel explained his roadmap to reducing corrections spending, now the third-largest department in the General Fund Budget. What was…
Media
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Sec. John Wetzel Talks Corrections Reforms on The BOX
In latest podcast from The BOX, Corrections Secretary John Wetzel chats with Matt Brouillette about reducing the cost of corrections – a major expenditure in the Pennsylvania state budget…
Media
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Pennsylvania Corrections Spending
The FY 2011-12 total operating budget of $63.4 billion, which included $27.1 billion in General Fund spending, represented the first year-to-year reduction in state spending in at least 40 years.
Fact Sheet
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Government Union Jeopardizes Criminal Justice Reform
As Pennsylvania takes a hard look at reforming its criminal justice system, prepare for the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association’s fear-mongering campaign against reducing prison populations. The officers’ union opposition…
Media
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Is State Corrections Spending Sustainable?
The chart below shows the unsustainable growth in Pennsylvania state corrections spending and inmate population. The criminal justice system’s goal shouldn’t be to simply lock up as many people…
Media
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Criminal Justice Reforms to Reduce Spending & Crime
Change is on the horizon for Pennsylvania’s Department of Corrections – now the third-largest state agency in the General Fund budget – which along with state debt, pensions…
Media
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Fiscal Outlook for Pennsylvania: Not Too Rosy
This week the new Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office held its first annual seminar on the state economy and revenue. After a series of presentations on the state of the…
Media
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Corrections Reform: Another Sacred Cow?
Our friends at Reason.org have called out Pennsylvania lawmakers’ opposition to prison healthcare reform, calling it yet another public sector union sacred cow. At issue is House…
Media
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Time for Pennsylvania to Get Right on Crime
Last week on NPR, former U.S. Attorney General and Pennsylvania Gov. Dick Thornburgh joined Adam Gelb, director for Pew’s Public Safety Performance Project, to discuss criminal justice…
Media
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Prisoners Cost Less in Michigan than in Pennsylvania
Last week, Gov. Tom Corbett announced that more than 2,000 inmates previously housed in Michigan and Virginia are returning to Pennsylvania prisons. The problem is that it’s cheaper…
Media
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