Author: Alan Bean

Budget Crunch Offers No Hope for Reduction in Incarceration in Texas

January 22, 2011January 22, 2011 · 1 Comment ·

By Dr. Charles Kiker

Some pundits have speculated that the budget crises in the states could result in reduced incarceration. After all, reduction in prison populations could save states a bundle. Alan Bean has a couple of recent posts on the Friends of Justice blog that deal with this prospect: “Why are Newt and Grover jumping on the prison reform bandwagon?” (January 8, 2011) and “Is mass incarceration history?” (January 18, 2011). Bean doesn’t hold out much hope, as indicated by his comment in the latter article: “We may see a year or two of minor decline in the prison population, but when happy days are here again politicians will start banging the ‘tough on crime’ drum? (more…)

Simple Justice reviews “Taking out the Trash in Tulia, Texas”

January 22, 2011January 22, 2011 · 5 Comments ·

“That Alan Bean chose to keep his narrative close to the vest, to let the facts do the talking for him rather than ram the moral of this sordid story down the reader’s throat, makes this book a fascinating and consuming read. Be prepared, as once you start reading Taking Out The Trash, chances are you won’t put the book down until you’ve finished.”

Scott Greenfield’s review of Alan Bean’s book, “Taking out the Trash in Tulia, Texas” originally appeared in Scott’s highly respected blog, Simple Justice.

Book Review: Taking Out The Trash in Tulia, Texas

I’ve never been to Tulia. There’s no particular reason why I would go there, and yet after reading Alan Bean’s book, Taking Out The Trash in Tulia, Texas, published by Advanced Concept Design Books, I feel as if I know the place well. (more…)

Death penalty dies a slow death in Illinois

January 18, 2011January 18, 2011 · 1 Comment ·

By Alan Bean

Eight years ago, Illinois Governor George Ryan declared a moratorium on the death penalty when it was revealed that many “confessions” were coerced. In Chicago, for instance, commander Jon Burge allegedly tortured one hundred eight men between 1973 and 1991. Now, the Illinois legislature has voted to make Ryan’s moratorium permanent and hopes are high that current governor Pat Quinn will sign the legislation.

This Chicago Tribune editorial demonstrates that compassion for murderers has little to do with the demise of the death penalty in Illinois. Few Americans want to be associated with rank injustice. When the system is so broken that innocent men are certain to die, support for the ultimate punishment plummets. (more…)

Is mass incarceration history?

January 18, 2011 · 1 Comment ·

By Alan Bean

Over at Citiwire.net, Neil Peirce has a balanced, informative and succinct report on the growing trend to re-think mass incarceration. What’s driving this reappraisal of lock-em-up policies? Declining tax revenues.

The states, which fund the bulk of our prisons, were hit by a breathtaking revenue decline of 30 percent in 2009 alone. It’s become ever-tougher for law-and-order politicos to justify ever-expanding prison rolls and costs.

What’s likely to frustrate a serious re-evaluation of prison policy? Too many people are dependent on the prison boom and its poisonous fruit.

Rural legislators across the country have pressed for prisons as job opportunities for their residents. Will they agree to shutdowns, even in these toughest of economic times for state budgets ever? It’s hard to believe.

Michelle Alexander doubts that tough times will make much of a dent in the drug war, and I fear she’s right. We may see a year or two of minor decline in the prison population, but when happy days are here again politicians will start banging the “tough-on-crime” drum. (more…)

Sex and the single black woman: how the mass incarceration of black men hurts black women

January 18, 2011July 29, 2011 · 2 Comments ·

“The simplest way to help the black family would be to lock up fewer black men for non-violent offences.”

Michelle Alexander recommended this disturbing article in the Economist when she spoke in Dallas last Thursday.

Consider this:

Some 70% of black babies are born out of wedlock. The collapse of the traditional family has made black Americans far poorer and lonelier than they would otherwise have been. The least-educated black women suffer the most. In 2007 only 11% of US-born black women aged 30-44 without a high school diploma had a working spouse, according to the Pew Research Centre. Their college-educated sisters fare better, but are still affected by the sex imbalance. Because most seek husbands of the same race—96% of married black women are married to black men—they are ultimately fishing in the same pool.

Probing the roots of political violence

January 12, 2011April 6, 2011 · 4 Comments ·

By Alan Bean

“The rise in homicide [in the mid-nineteenth century] coincided . . . with a loss of faith in government and in moderate, mainstream political parties . . . Parties that were more aggressive ideologically took their place. The leaders of these parties questioned the legitimacy of national institutions and challenged other Americans’ morality, patriotism, and right to citizenship. They used extreme rhetoric to generate partisan enthusiasm, and they encouraged righteous and retributive violence, especially in defense of property and rights.”

Randolph Roth, American Homicide, p. 301

As a nation comes to grips with yet another senseless killing spree, leading lights on the left and right are making accusations and counter-accusations. Did Tea Party rhetoric encourage Jared Loughner to open fire on congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and a long list of innocent bystanders? Was Loughner indirectly influenced by a poisonous political environment? Or, as Sarah Palin suggests, is Loughner solely responsible for his actions? (more…)

Faith and Mass Incarceration: An Annotated Bibliography

January 12, 2011January 12, 2011 · 12 Comments ·

By Dr. Charles Kiker

I thought it would be helpful to list some works I have read which I feel would be helpful in understanding the topic and in working to end the New Jim Crow.

1. First would have to be the recent work by Michelle Alexander,

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. Ms. Alexander argues convincingly that the criminal justice system at all levels, including the Supreme Court, especially in regard to the war on drugs, has effectively instituted a new Jim Crow by incarcerating young African Americans and those of Hispanic origin vastly disproportionate to their numbers. (more…)

Why are Newt and Grover jumping on the prison reform bandwagon?

January 8, 2011January 8, 2011 · 9 Comments ·

By Alan Bean

Sure, we can save a pile of money by cutting back on the size of our military and our prison system; but if we don’t reinvest that money in the lives of our most desperate citizens we are only sewing the wind.

Newt Gingrich and Pat Nolan have published a surprising op-ed in the Washington Post asserting that our criminal justice system is broken and needs to be fixed.

Here’s the heart of their argument:

The Right on Crime Campaign represents a seismic shift in the legislative landscape. And it opens the way for a common-sense left-right agreement on an issue that has kept the parties apart for decades.

There is an urgent need to address the astronomical growth in the prison population, with its huge costs in dollars and lost human potential. We spent $68 billion in 2010 on corrections – 300 percent more than 25 years ago. The prison population is growing 13 times faster than the general population. These facts should trouble every American.

Our prisons might be worth the current cost if the recidivism rate were not so high, but, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, half of the prisoners released this year are expected to be back in prison within three years. If our prison policies are failing half of the time, and we know that there are more humane, effective alternatives, it is time to fundamentally rethink how we treat and rehabilitate our prisoners.

We can no longer afford business as usual with prisons. The criminal justice system is broken, and conservatives must lead the way in fixing it. (more…)

The Scott sisters are free!

January 7, 2011January 7, 2011 · 3 Comments ·

The Scott sisters have now been released from prison. After a brief story from AOL (immediately below) I have pasted an excerpt from the Clarion-Ledger dealing with the controversy over Governor Haley Barbour’s stipulation that Gladys Scott’s release is contingent upon her willingness to donate a kidney to Jamie Scott.

Scott Sisters Released From Mississippi Prison; Transplant Next?

Jamie and Gladys Scott, the Mississippi sisters who became a cause celebre among civil rights activists, were released from prison today after serving 16 years for an armed robbery that netted $11. (more…)