A package of 9 criminal justice bills is moving quickly in the State Assembly. The so-called “Tougher on Crime” bills were introduced last Monday and had a hearing on Thursday. It is expected that the Assembly Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee will vote soon to recommend the bills for a vote by the full Assembly. LWVWI is opposing five of the bills -- AB 803, AB 805, AB 806, AB 807 and AB 809 -- and submitted this statement to the committee focusing on three of them. 

If enacted, these proposals would set Wisconsin on a path for corrections that is less effective, more expensive and ultimately unsustainable. At a time when the prison population in many other states has shrunk without jeopardizing public safety, Wisconsin’s prison population has grown to 134% of capacity. We are faced with the prospect of building an expensive new prison to relieve the overcrowding and hazardous conditions of the prison in Green Bay. These bills threaten to exacerbate, not relieve, the problem.

At the hearing, there was some debate even within the majority party about some of these proposals. Your call or email to your Assembly Representative NOW might keep some of these bills from making it to the Assembly floor. Here are details about three particularly bad bills:

• AB 805 would require the Department of Corrections to recommend revoking extended supervision, probation and parole for anyone charged with a new crime. Those charged would spend time in prison while awaiting disposition of their cases; they might be returned to serve additional time. There was bipartisan concern at the hearing that new prison construction could be required  
• AB 806 would expand the acts for which a juvenile may be placed in a juvenile correctional facility or secured residential care center to any acts that would be considered a felony if committed by an adult. This would complicate the closure of the Lincoln Hills/Copper Lakes detention centers by adding to the populations there. Worse, by blurring the distinction between juveniles and adults, it would lead to the further criminalization of juveniles.
• AB 809 would make it harder for offenders to get early release to parole. Specifically, it would add to the list of crimes that render prisoners ineligible for release due to age or health conditions, and it would exacerbate the overcrowding of detention facilities.

Contact your State Assembly Representative now and urge them to OPPOSE AB 806 and AB 809. Tell your Representative that a focus on rehabilitation and restoration would be more effective in reducing our prison population. It would enhance public safety by increasing inmates’ opportunities for a successful return to society. 

You can find your Representative by typing your address into the “Who Are My Legislators?” field on the state legislature’s home page or by calling the Legislative Hotline. In Madison, dial 266-9960. Toll-free, call 1-800-362-9472.