[GPSCC-chat] crowded prisons in Miichigan

[Jim Doyle]

In an article
http://www.juancole.com/2016/07/spending-education-decades.html
revealing prison spending is three times
as much as education spending

One reader had the folowing comment to offer

Mandatory drug sentencing laws passed in 1978 in Michigan caused state 
prison overcrowding.

Those charged with mere possession of a certain amount of
narcotics faced a mandatory sentence of life in prison with no parole.

Eventually, however, due to the lobbying efforts of groups
such as Families Against Mandatory Minimums, those laws
were ameliorated to allow for parole after the serving of
20 years imprisonment.

Criminalizing those drivers who do not have auto insurance
resulted in overcrowding in county jails since about 20% of
all Michigan drivers and about 60% of all Detroit motorists
do not carry car insurance. It is not uncommon to see vehicles
on Detroit streets being operated with no license plates.

Auto insurance for Detroit residents can cost up to $4,000 per
annum, whereas the average home in Detroit sells for about
$10,000 in most neighborhoods.

Making unpaid child support a felony in Michigan resulted in
many parents being incarcerated, in addition to civil contempt
of court charges to enforce payment

A large percentage of incarcerated citizens in Michigan are
serving time for either drug possession, lack of auto insurance,
or defaulted child support obligations.
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