Here's one way to cut costs in the cash-strapped State of Illinois: Give inmates, including violent and otherwise dangerous criminals, get-out-jail-early cards. But to avoid public outrage over the early release of armed robbers, repeat drunk-drivers and other unsavory characters, it's probably best not to say too much.
A secret change in Gov. Pat Quinn's prison policy (Sun-Times), reported by the Associated Press and the Sun-Times, tried to do just that.
An AP report showing that many hardened convicts were released after just a few weeks (AP) for unearned "good behavior" prompted Gov. Quinn to suspend the early release scheme. Records obtained by AP show that more than 850 inmates were released before the mandatory 61 days, awarded good-conduct credit "immediately upon entering prison."
The AP article punctuates its report with individual cases of suspects let out weeks before they finished their sentences, sometimes after as few as 11 days. And they didn't even have to pay their Illinois criminal defense attorneys for the early release.
For example, Jorge Bogas served just two and-a-half weeks in prison for a DUI in which he hit two cars and seriously injured one victim. Antoine Garrett, previously convicted of armed robbery, spent just three weeks of a one-year sentence after he was convicted on a drug charge.
DuPage County State's Attorney Joseph Birkett called the secretive early prisoner release program "outrageous."
Although Illinois' Dept. of Corrections calls the policy "more efficient" and and contends it's an important way to save money, Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez said it could threaten public safety. Gov. Quinn said the early release policy was separate from another plan to release 1,000 inmates annually in order to save money.
His intentions are understandable, but why return violent and dangerous people to the streets? Surely there are plenty of non-violent drug offenders clogging up the system.
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