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redefine violent offenses in a way rejected by America’s founders and criminal justice experts for the last 300 years. He recommends that burglary from a building or possession of 10 grams of cocaine—both property crimes rather than crimes against persons—should now be classified as violent crimes. If this radical propsal is adopted the cost of prisons will skyrocket on the one hand and the public will be endangered on the other. Burglars would have an incentive to carry weapons and to use those weapons.
Official estimates are that the governor’s recommendations (known as Proposal X) to abolish parole and lengthen sentences will cost $850 million over the next ten years for new prison construction. Operating costs will have to be increased by $350-400 million per year to support 52,064 prison beds, an increase of 30,000. Independent budget analysts suggest that the actual cost will be closer to $2 billion for construction.
That money must come from somewhere, since the governor is opposed to any tax increase. Is the money going to come from education? From colleges and universities? From local law enforcement? From programs which have a track record of preventing crime? If we are going to spend all this money on corrections, we had better be certain it is effective, because there won’t be any money to do anything else.
What happens if we spend all this money, and Virginia’s experience is similar to California, which has tripled prison capacity with no significant crime reduction? Or Florida? Prison over-crowding forces early release merely to reduce prison population, thereby reducing public safety.
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