The ballot initiative offered a dramatic solution to the problem of California's overcrowded prisons and jails. Called Proposition 47, it proposed to downgrade a number of nonviolent felonies involving less than $950-including grand theft, shoplifting, writing bad checks, receiving stolen property, and drug possession-to misdemeanors. As a result of this change, offenders convicted of these crimes would probably not wind up behind bars. In 2014, thirty states passed legislation designed to lower incarceration rates, often by steering nonviolent offenders to community supervision. These policy choices reflect a small but significant trend in American corrections: fewer inmates. To be sure, these decreases do little to threaten our nation's title as "the globe's leading incarcerator." About
2.2 million Americans are in prison and jail. The United States locks up six times as many of its citizens as Canada does, and eight times as many as a number of European democracies. Still, the fact that politicians are willing to accept policies that reduce the number of inmates represents a sea change in the country's corrections strategies. Inmates today are serving more time due to:
A. private prison growth.
B. the chance of someone who is arrested going to prison today is much greater than it was thirty years ago.
C. increased crime rates.
D. "get tough" sentencing laws.
Answer: D
You might also like to view...
Which of the following statements about smart policing is true?
A) Smart policing involves a partnership between police and criminal justice researchers. B) Reactive response to calls for service is a key element of smart policing. C) Smart policing encourages the use of traditional methods of policing. D) Smart policing involves a specific policing model designed to reduce crime.
Experiments are clearly the most effective means of data gathering
Indicate whether the statement is true or false
________ property is defined as virtually any information belonging to an individual or organization
a. Real b. Proprietary c. Intellectual d. Private e. All of the above.
The relationship between the victim and the offender is the most important factors for police when deciding how to respond to a crime
Indicate whether the statement is true or false