Case Study - "Time to Dig Out"

The case study, "Time to Dig Out", the Governor has come against a road block in concerns with the budget for correctional facilities and making sure that all other areas of the budget, such as school funding, are being met. The decision that the Governor decided was to propose a bill called, "The Truth in Sentencing", which was similar in nature to California's Three Strikes You Are Out law. (Stojkovic, Kalinich, & Klofas, 2003, pp. 75-76). Wisconsin implemented one of the nation's toughest truth-in-sentencing laws four years ago without ever assessing the cost. Today, thousands of inmates are on waiting lists for prison jobs, education and treatment programs. Wardens report more bad conduct and hopelessness among offenders. When they are released, inmates report to parole officers with average caseloads of about 60 who have little to offer in direct aid other than free bus tickets, hygiene kits and referrals to agencies with more long waiting lists. "When truth in sentencing sailed through the Legislature in 1998, Wisconsin's crime rate had fallen 14.3% over the preceding five years. From 1998 to 2003, that trend continued, with a decline of 12.4%". (Barton,Zahn, 2004) The Truth in Sentencing is comparable to the Three Strikes Law that California currently has in place.