Wednesday morning began with 100,552 inmates locked up in Florida prisons. The state also has or will soon have 11 thousand more beds under construction at a cost of almost a billion dollars. Florida’s major business groups are saying enough is enough.
The bed this inmate will sleep in tonight cost 77,000 dollars to build. The state wants to build 11,000 more beds over the next five years. For the first time, Florida’s major business organizations are saying enough is enough. Florida can’t afford any more prisons.
Every state, including Idaho is in the same position. The U.S. now incarcerates more of its population than any place on the planet. As one writer has put, we are becoming a nation of jailers. Idaho, second in the country in adults under correctional supervision, is claiming the title of head jailer. Perhaps the business community will step up in Idaho and demand more responsible sentencing policies and investment in programs that reduce recidivism.
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