MPRI eNews
March-April 2010: National Reports Point to Growing MPRI Success
Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Update |
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| Data Points |
Total MPRI Releases through 9/2009: 19,105
Expected number of returns: 6,491
Actual number of returns: 4,408
Improvement: 2,083
Note: While these results for MPRI parolees are precisely what was hoped for, it is still too early to say that MPRI activities alone caused the changes. For much more information, click here. |
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| Welcome to the March-April 2010 MPRI eNews! | |
As Michigan lawmakers work on yet another tight budget for 2011, support continues to grow for the MPRI as a strategy for protecting the public.
New national reports have recognized success in Michigan. Business leaders are urging support for reducing prison population without compromising public safety. And MPRI supporters testified before a subcommittee about the success of the initiative.
While the MPRI enjoys bipartisan backing, please keep reminding your legilators that the strategy is making communities safer and saving taxpayers money. You are the best person to deliver that message as lawmakers deliberate.
As always, we're eager to spread the word about the MPRI. Please send an e-mail to those who might have an interest in the MPRI eNews and suggest they check it out. Cut and paste this link into your e-mail, so they can subscribe: http://tinyurl.com/MPRI-Subscribe
Thanks for your help. And, as always, we thank you for reading! Please send us your comments and suggestions.
Jeff Padden and Paul Elam
Public Policy Associates, Inc. |
| National Report: Michigan Trims Prisons, Preserves Safety |
A new national report finds Michigan is one of four states that have reduced prison populations while maintaining public safety. The report by the Sentencing Project, "Downscaling Prisons: Lessons from Four States," points out that the MPRI is a key reason for the success. To see the press release, click here. To see the complete report, click here. | Report Shows First Prison Population Decline in Decades
|  The number of state prisoners across the country dropped in 2009 for the first time since 1972, according to a new survey by the Pew Center on the States.
"The decline is happening for several reasons, but an important contributor is that states began to realize there are research-based ways they can cut their prison populations while continuing to protect public safety," said Adam Gelb, director of Pew's Public Safety Performance Project.
To see a Detroit News story on the report, click here. To see a Pew press release on the report, click here. To see the full report, click here.
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Corrections Budget Passes Senate
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The MPRI budget would increase by $10.9 million next fiscal year -- but most of the increase would go to county jail reimbursement, under the bill passed by the Senate. In all, the $2 billion Department of Corrections budget as passed by the Senate is $32.7 million higher than Governor Jennifer M. Granholm recommended. However, it does not include savings from the "good time" sentencing reforms backed by the governor. It also does not include funding for the 3 percent pay raises employees are scheduled to get under union contracts. The House will now go to work passing its version of the budget. Differences are likely to be worked out in a House-Senate conference committee. To see a Department of Corrections summary of highlights of the Senate-passed bill, click here.
For the bill and a legislative analysis, click here. |
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MDOC Director Caruso Getting National Attention
|  Michigan Director of Corrections Director Patricia L. Caruso has become an important national voice in discussions about effective parole policies, in part because of Michigan's leadership in prisoner reentry. She recently has been quoted in the New York Times and took part in a discussion on parole policies on NPR"s "The Diane Rehm Show."
To hear the Diane Rehm program, click here. To see the New York Times article click here. To see a column by the Detroit News Editorial Page Editor Nolan Finley, click here. |
Business Leaders Back Smart Prison Reforms
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 A number of business groups, including the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, are urging lawmakers to support parole policies that protect Michigan citizens and their pocketbooks. The Detroit Free Press lauded the Detroit Chamber for supporting reinstatement of good-time credits, and expanding re-entry programs. To see the Free Press editorial, click here. To see a letter to the editor from Brad Williams of the Detroit Chamber, click here. |
| Michigan Department of Corrections Reorganization Completed | The Michigan Department of Corrections has completed its reorganization, with several key leaders in new roles.
Russell L. Marlan has been appointed Executive Bureau Administrator, overseeing the Parole and Commutation Board, the Legislative Affairs Section, the Office of Public Information and Communications, the Office of Research and Planning, and the Office of Community Planning which houses the Office of Offender ReEntry and the Office of Community Corrections.
The Office of Community Planning is supervised by Administrator Kenneth Brzozowski. James Yarborough is managing the Office of Offender ReEntry.
To see the description in the MDOC newsletter, click here. To see the previous eNews report on the reorganization, click here. |
| Washtenaw Attorneys Help Parolees Dress for Success |
 Parolees seeking jobs in Washtenaw County will look sharper at interviews, thanks to the new Suits 4 Success program.About 25 members of the Washtenaw County Bar Associationbrought suit bags with professional attire or donated cash at a drop-off event in downtown Ann Arbor. To see an annarbor.com story on the project, click here. |
Detrot Mayor Seeks Federal Money for Prisoner Re-entry Programs
|  Detroit Mayor Dave Bing is urging officials in Washington to provide support for a number of programs that will strengthen the Motor City, including money for prisoner reentry programs.
To see the Detroit Free Press article on the mayor's trip to Washington, click here. |
| Experts Discuss Value, Future of the MPRI at U-M Forum |
Rep. Smith |
Rep. Proos | More than 170 people heard a stimulating discussion about the policy and politics of the MPRI during a March 29 forum at the University of Michigan. The panelists were Michigan Department of Corrections Director Patricia L. Caruso; state Rep. John Proos (R-St. Joseph), vice chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Corrections; Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith (D-Salem Township), chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Corrections; and Peter Luke, Lansing correspondent for Booth Newspapers. The moderator was Jeffrey D. Padden, president of Public Policy Associates, Inc. For an Ann Arbor Chronicle story on the forum, click here. To watch the forum, click here. |
| U-M Video Series Tout Success of the MPRI |
Students and faculty in the University of Michigan School of Social Work are partnering with
the MPRI to fight recidivism and help
convicted felons find a new, productive place in society. The project was recently featured in a two-part video in the university's Out of the Blue: The Michigan Difference series. The series is presented by the
Office of the Vice President for Communications and highlights the people, research,
outreach, and events at U-M. To see part one of the MPRI video, click here. To see part two, click here. |
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Former Engler Parole Board Chair Backs Granholm Policies
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 The man who chaired the Michigan Parole Board for several years under Governor John M. Engler in the 1990s has strong praise for the policies that have led to more prisoners being paroled. Gary M. Gabry, now an attorney in private practice, says the new policies show respect for both the minimum and maximum sentences. He told Gongwer News Service that denying parole for no other reason than the crime they committed in the first place "is like trying them twice." To see the Gongwer News Service article, click here. |
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