GOP unlocks a fear game

March 3, 2007

Gov. Jennifer Granholm should not be swayed by the deception and demagoguery surrounding her decision to close Southern Michigan Correctional Facility in Jackson. Shuttering the 1,500-bed prison by July will save the strapped state $35 million a year. It's part of a sound plan to release 5,000 minor offenders who have already served their minimum sentences, and commute the sentences of another 500 inmates who are too old or sick to pose a risk.

Still, the response by some Republicans to closing the prison has been near hysterical. Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, said the prospect of releasing hardened criminals has created panic in the streets. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Wayne Kuipers, R-Holland, has suggested the plan will make the state unsafe. The Jackson County prosecutor has called it a legalized prison break.

Nonsense.

The 5,000 nonviolent inmates going out on parole are not early releases; nor do they pose an undue risk. They have already served their time for crimes such as retail fraud, forgery, larceny, drug possession and failure to pay child support. And Corrections will add parole agents to closely supervise them in the community.

Concerns about job loss are understandable. Southern Michigan employs 460 people. But MDOC has 1,000 vacancies throughout the system, including 200 at other Jackson prisons. Most, if not all, employees at the closed prison will transfer to other state jobs.

The larger point, though, is that prisons are not employment agencies. Michigan has one of the nation's highest incarceration rates, spending nearly $2 billion a year on corrections. Keeping unneeded prisons open to provide jobs is fiscally irresponsible.

Other prisons should also close. Granholm must not let politicians exploiting the public's worst fears keep her from doing what's best for Michigan.

Copyright © 2007 Detroit Free Press Inc.