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OPINIONS
Tom Miller: Prison report spells out costly, but needed fixes
Every single day, three more people in West Virginia are sent to jail. And 85 percent of them wind up in prison because of drug or alcohol abuse. These are the somber but unchallenged conclusions of the Governor's Commission on Prison Overcrowding created by the governor late last year.
At least one southern West Virginia circuit court judge told legislators earlier this year his experience is that nine of every 10 he sends to jail are there because of problems with drugs and/or alcohol. So it shouldn't be any surprise that the present inventory of 14 state prisons and 10 regional jails can't handle the load.
Current trends suggest the state's present prison population of 6,300 inmates will increase to 8,500 by 2012 and exceed 10,300 by the year 2017. And since about 20 percent of that number is being temporarily accommodated in those regional jails, there clearly is a need for new jail construction by the state Division of Corrections.
A key recommendation in the commission report given to Gov. Joe Manchin on July 1 is that a new 1,200-bed medium security prison be constructed as soon as possible at a cost of more than $200 million. But there are other, equally important recommendations to reduce the number of persons sentenced to jail time -- particularly those guilty of non-violent offenses.
According to the commission findings, in 2006 more than three of every four new inmates were convicted of non-violent crimes. The study also suggests that if 500 of those individuals had been diverted into community corrections programs, the state could save $14 million a year.
Another area that demands attention is the Legislature's recent emphasis on "getting tough on crime" that has produced 75 new laws in the last 18 years that provide for longer prison terms for various crimes and also in many instances require a mandatory minimum sentence that makes these persons ineligible for early parole.
These changes have resulted in dramatic results. Between 2001 and 2006 the average sentence for murder increased from 53.6 months to 86.1 months and the average sentence for burglary jumped from 24.4 months to 44.4 months.
The needs for additional facilities can't be ignored. The overall price tag is more than $250 million since the commission also recommends a 300-bed addition at the St. Mary's Correctional Complex and up to four additional 80-bed work/release centers around the state.
How quickly the Legislature moves on these recommendations will probably depend on the governor, who has yet to respond publicly to these findings. It seems likely the first steps will come at the 2010 legislative session, which convenes next January, to prevent the judicial branch of state government from forcing changes.
The State Supreme Court has launched its own review of current prison conditions and is expected to complete that study sometime next year. The court ordered the state to build the present new maximum-security prison at Mt. Olive in Fayette County in 1986 after declaring conditions in the former Moundsville penitentiary not only unacceptable but unconstitutional.
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Gross revenue at the state's four racetracks declined more than $70 million during the last budget year. According to figures released last week by the West Virginia Lottery Commission, the total gross revenue at the four tracks was down from $906 million on June 30, 2008, to $826 million at the state fiscal year ending last month.
That's an overall decrease of about 8.8 percent, which is nearly twice the 4.7 percent decline in gambling revenues nationwide as calculated by the American Gaming Association.
Keep in mind that's even with the recent addition of table games at three of the four locations. Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center in Nitro saw its gross revenue dip by 23 percent from $65 million to $50 million. Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort at Chester experienced an 11 percent decline from $215 million to $192 million, and Wheeling Island Hotel Casino Racetrack experienced a mere 1.3 percent decline from $156 million to $154 million.
That is why the renewed efforts to add table games at the Charles Town Races & Slots in the state's Eastern Panhandle is so critical. That operation grosses more than the other three combined. It had gross revenue of $430 million for the fiscal year that ended June 30, down 6.7 percent from its $461 million in FY2008.
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Don't read too much into the plans for this week's legislative hearing in Charleston on the proposal to amend the state constitution to define the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman. It's window dressing -- nothing more -- for lawmakers who fear the state's current law that prohibits the state from recognizing gay marriages performed elsewhere might be struck down by a court.
There are too many liberals in the Legislature, particularly in the House Judiciary Committee, which any such proposed state referendum would have to survive before it would go on the ballot for a statewide vote to ever allow the resolution to get to the House floor, let along gain the two-thirds majority passage vote it would need there.
Tom Miller is a retired state government reporter for The Herald-Dispatch. He is a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch opinion page.
