Bill Text: MI HR0242 | 2021-2022 | 101st Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: A resolution to urge the state of Michigan to accelerate efforts to reduce mass incarceration.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-03-01 - Referred To Committee On Judiciary [HR0242 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2021-HR0242-Introduced.html
house resolution no.242
Rep. Jones offered the following resolution:
A resolution to urge the state of Michigan to accelerate efforts to reduce mass incarceration.
Whereas, There are over 2 million people currently incarcerated in prisons and jails in the United States, and over 6 million people living under court-ordered supervision. Incarceration rates have increased 500 percent over the last 40 years, while crime rates in the United States have generally decreased over that same period. As a result, the United States now has the highest rate of incarceration of any country in the world; and
Whereas, In Michigan, over 50,000 residents are confined or detained in a state prison, federal prison, or local county jail. In addition, at least 100,000 people are booked into local jails in Michigan each year. Rates of imprisonment have increased dramatically in the last 40 years, and Michigan’s pre-trial population has more than tripled since 1978; and
Whereas, Mass incarceration leads to devastating consequences for those within the prison system and for society at large. Overcrowding in detention facilities contributes to chronic health care neglect, psychological trauma, and other human rights abuses of prisoners. Individuals who have been incarcerated face numerous disadvantages upon release or parole, particularly in housing and employment. Furthermore, mass incarceration creates an unsustainable financial burden on states as they struggle to accommodate the rapidly expanding penal system; and
Whereas, Communities of color are disproportionately impacted by mass incarceration. Black men are six times more likely to be incarcerated than white men, and about 1 in every 12 Black men in their thirties is in prison or jail on any given day. In Michigan, white people are underrepresented in the prison population, while Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaskan Native communities are overrepresented. The inequities in detainment rates demonstrate how mass incarceration is used to continually disenfranchise and disempower Black communities; and
Whereas, There is little evidence to suggest that mass incarceration improves public safety. While crime rates have generally decreased, mass incarceration has not been shown to contribute substantially to this decline. Lengthy prison sentences are particularly ineffective, as recidivism rates decrease significantly with age. In addition, incarceration does not address any of the societal problems that lead to some types of crimes, such as extreme poverty and drug addiction. The increase in state expenditures on corrections to accommodate mass incarceration is therefore not only expensive, but also ineffective and counterproductive; and
Whereas, The overcrowding that results from mass incarceration is exacerbating stressful conditions for corrections officers and prison employees. The COVID-19 Pandemic has contributed to widespread shortages of corrections officers in Michigan. Corrections officers are overburdened by working conditions that require them to supervise hundreds of prisoners in environments that can be volatile and dangerous; and
Whereas, Every branch of government can play a role in helping to reduce mass incarceration. Some strategies include implementing diversion and deflection programs, changing police practices, reducing the average length of stay, reforming sentencing and parole, improving mental and physical health programming in prison, funding reentry services, and reinvesting money back into the community. Approaching the issue from multiple fronts is the most effective way to address the many causes and contributors to mass incarceration; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we urge the state of Michigan to accelerate efforts to reduce mass incarceration; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the Attorney General, the Director of the Michigan State Police, the Director of the Michigan Department of Corrections, and the Supreme Court Administrator.
