Michigan cited as national leader for cost-saving crime reduction strategies
LANSING, MI – As states grapple with the fiscal crisis and confront costly and overburdened criminal justice systems, two reports released today by Justice Strategies and the Sentencing Project use Michigan as an example of successful prison downsizing that maintains public safety.
“Downscaling Prisons: Lessons from Four States” highlights the growing trend in Michigan to reform sentencing policies and scale back the use of imprisonment in favor of evidence-based policies directed at producing more effective public safety outcomes and reducing public spending.
The reports find that four states – Michigan, Kansas, New Jersey, and New York – have reduced their prison populations by 5 percent to 20 percent since 1999 without any increases in crime (Michigan reduced its prison population by 12 percent since 1999.) This came about at a time when the national prison population increased by 12 percent; and in six states it increased by more than 40 percent. The reductions were achieved through a mix of legislative reforms and changes in practice by corrections and parole agencies.
Michigan was commended for eliminating most mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses and implementing the statewide Michigan Prisoner Reentry Initiative (MPRI) to enhance parole success. Through MPRI, communities have the capacity to support parole supervision and increase parole success through assistance with housing, employment and treatment services – at a cost of only $6 a day compared with $90 a day for prison.
“Michigan is finally starting to turn around the skyrocketing prison population and the ballooning Corrections budget by enacting policies that get smart on crime,” said Elizabeth Arnovits, executive director, Michigan Council on Crime and Delinquency.
“The Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative uses sophisticated assessment instruments to inform prison programming and transitional planning. Parole board members can be more confident in their decisions when presented with parole plans that anticipate a parolee’s expected needs and supports.” Arnovits notes, “MPRI is working. Parole revocations are down despite an increase in the parole population.”
There are more than 21,000 people on parole, yet they commit fewer violations than when the parole population was below 16,000. The rate of people under parole supervision who are returned to prison is the lowest on record.
Established in 1956, the Michigan Council on Crime and Delinquency (MCCD) is Michigan’s only statewide organization dedicated to improving the effectiveness of policies and systems aimed at preventing and controlling crime. www.miccd.org.
Justice Strategies provides research and technical support to policymakers and advocacy organizations working for criminal justice reform. The Sentencing Project is a national, non-profit organization engaged in research and advocacy for criminal justice reform. www.sentencingproject.org
Court Must Overturn Conviction of Mother Too Poor to Pay Child Support, ACLU Says
LANSING, MI — The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan and the Michigan Innocence Clinic asked an appeals court today to overturn the felony conviction of a Detroit woman who was too poor to pay more than $1,100 a month in child support. Selesa Likine suffers from a severe mental illness that has resulted in her losing both her job and the custody of her three children.
“Today we have an opportunity to set the standard for how we treat our most vulnerable members of society – people like Ms. Likine, whose only ‘crime’ is being poor,” said Michael J. Steinberg, ACLU of Michigan legal director. “With more Michiganders on the edge of economic catastrophe, it is more important than ever to stop the government’s attempts to resurrect debtor’s prisons from the dustbin of history.”
In 2005, Selesa Likine was diagnosed with Schizoaffective Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder. After a lengthy hospital stay, she was terminated from her job and has not been able to work since. In 2007, despite the fact that her only income was the $603 a month she received in Social Security benefits, the court increased her child support payments from $181 to $1131 a month. The Friend of the Court mistakenly recommended the larger amount because of a commission Likine received in a one-time transaction selling real estate. It was her only sale and her real estate license lapsed in 2006 because she couldn’t pay for renewal and continuing education costs.
For years, Likine attempted unsuccessfully to have the child support payments modified. In November 2008, Likine was convicted in Oakland County Circuit Court and later sentenced to probation for failing to pay the amount owed.
Today, the ACLU of Michigan and the Michigan Innocence Clinic are appealing her conviction, arguing before the Michigan Court of Appeals that the trial court violated her constitutional rights by not allowing her to present evidence that she was unable to pay her assessed child support and by not instructing the jury that inability to pay is a defense.
According to the brief, “Had the jury heard that she was unable to obtain employment after September 2005 because of her mental illness, Ms. Likine would have had a reasonably likely chance of acquittal by the jury. The error was therefore sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome.”
Last month, a judge adjusted Likine’s child support payments to $25 a month; however, she still owes tens of thousands of dollars in back payments.
In addition to Steinberg, Likine is represented by Michigan Innocence Clinic Co-directors Bridget McCormack and David A. Moran. Moran argued today’s appeal.
To read the brief on appeal, go to: http://www.aclumich.org/sites/default/files/file/Likineappealsbrief.pdf.
