Prisons are overcrowded for many other reasons other than the issue of parole.
Many of the inmates, suffer from mental illness. Those that do have a severe mental illness should be housed in a facility that specializes in counseling and programs that will benefit the individual. These people should be looked at and evaluated more closely. Putting them into prison, in many cases, makes the situation worse, which contributes to the high recidivism rate. If these people were given proper treatment earlier on, there is a good possibility they would not return to prison.
Many of the prisons are filled with inmates that suffer from drug addiction, I feel the court should be more lenient and sentence them to rehabilitation. Prisons don’t really focus on drug rehabilitation as well as they should. If people can work on their addiction and be productive, they too would have a greater chance to live a positive, fulfilling life without ever returning to prison. This would impact the overcrowding.
Marcia Cerrone
East Haven