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RutlandHerald.com - We Are Vermont

Vt. Senate considers releasing 200 inmates

11:53 a.m.



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The Associated Press - Published: March 18, 2010

MONTPELIER - The Vermont Senate has passed a bill that would release 200 nonviolent prison inmates early as a way to help the Department of Corrections reduce its expenses by $10 million.

If the early release is approved by the House, it would save about $4.6 million. Of that, $1.3 million would be reinvested in community housing and substance abuse programs targeted at those released early.

The legislation calls for early release onto furlough of offenders convicted of nonviolent misdemeanors and felonies, which could include drug dealers, drug users and burglars.

The Burlington Free Press says the bill also calls on state officials to look for a way to reduce the number of people being held pending trial by 25 percent.







READER COMMENTS


Well, If our ultra liberal legislature decides to release 200 criminals back into our society, they should be held equally accountable for any crimes these released criminals commit. There should be conditions on the release of these offenders too. If the commit ANY crimes before the date of their original release date, they should receive an automatic 20 years.
This is a typical problem that liberals cause with their moronic views. Liberals would rather give money to non-deserving, non-productive, welfare scumbags who choose not to work, rather than to insure safe neighborhoods for our society. Liberals believe that non-productive citizens and criminals should be taken care of and that working productive citizens should be penalized. Liberals $uck.
-- Posted by Smart Thinking on Sun, Mar 21, 2010, 1:17 pm EST

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Lock your doors. The crime wave is a commin.......
-- Posted by Dr. Gonzo on Sat, Mar 20, 2010, 12:42 pm EST

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A A H YUP halfway houses and more long term treatment...more costs? would that be more cost effective than prisons? It might create hundreds of jobs here...
Quick call bernie sanders.. maybe he can add another 100 pages to the o mans healthcare bill.America is heading for bankrupsy so whats another job for the state's welfare/human services programs? ahhhh the state.... they can employ everyone..( ohhh we need to pay for all this)
-- Posted by bruce meyer on Sat, Mar 20, 2010, 8:09 am EST

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We need to create a system for non violent offenses to meet the non violent crime. Incarceration isn't always the answer and i agree with Mr. Canavan they shouldn't have been there in the first place. What about long term treatment, half way houses, community programs that will address the non violent crimes?
-- Posted by advocate at heart on Sat, Mar 20, 2010, 7:46 am EST

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Tom Canavan is absolutely right and if he ever runs for Alderman in Rutland,
I will vote for him enthusiastically.

-- Posted by De Mythologizer on Fri, Mar 19, 2010, 12:41 pm EST
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A few days ago De Mythologizer said he didnt live in Rutland so how can you vote there?Maybe I read his statement wrong when he commented on the police issues in Rutland and said he didnt live in Rutland but had a lot of concern and sentiment for the area,If I did read your comments wrong my apologies go to you sir.If I didnt he has lost all credibility in this forum.
As far as letting the criminals go,I feel that on the surface this sounds like a great plan .However where is the deterent to future criminals if they dont have to pay the price for not being good memebers of society?
I dont have an answer to this problem except to make criminals pay either through community service or do as some overseas countries do......Actually punish criminals and make examples of them to deter future acts of crime.
-- Posted by I gotta life on Sat, Mar 20, 2010, 5:47 am EST

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Wonderful!! Save 10 million bucks!!

There's an entire group in Montpelier with 1.6 billion in unfunded liabilities.

In November let's furlough a bunch of them!!!
-- Posted by Glenn Eno on Fri, Mar 19, 2010, 8:20 pm EST

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Wow great idea. First lets let the criminals out then lets ban the use or possession of firearms by law abiding folks. OUCH. I agree with pot users, sellers and growers not being prosecuted.
-- Posted by Catamount on Fri, Mar 19, 2010, 2:21 pm EST

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Tom Canavan is absolutely right and if he ever runs for Alderman in Rutland,
I will vote for him enthusiastically.
-- Posted by De Mythologizer on Fri, Mar 19, 2010, 12:41 pm EST

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These questions remain: will these 200 individuals do 10 million dollars worth of damage to the citizens of Vermont? and/or Will the police have to spend 10 million dollars in resources to round up these people again? Makes no sense if the answers to these ?s are yes.
-- Posted by Shy Wreath on Fri, Mar 19, 2010, 9:33 am EST

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I USED TO SAY, I WAS PROUD TO BE A VERMONTER .
SHIP THE 200 U ALL LET LOOSE OUT OF THE STATE AND NEVER LET THEM COME BACK.
-- Posted by joy joy on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 9:19 pm EST

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There is more than that running around Vermont stealing our money directly from our accounts. They are the senate and house members. the 200 hundred can't hurt us any worse than Shumlin and Smith cough drop taxes and drop dead policies. See you in hell Shummy and Dull. Just after your thru screwing up what's left of Vt. you will have to deal with us dumb and dumber.
-- Posted by njay oleman on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 8:19 pm EST

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why would we, as taxpayers, ever want to pay taxes to incarcerate non-violent criminals??? instead, sentence them to community service, real serious useful community service, so that they are benefiting the rest of society instead of costing us money. if it makes everyone feel better, sentence them to house arrest as well. let them pay their own rent and buy their own food. i sure as hell don't want to buy their meals.
-- Posted by bill johnson on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 6:27 pm EST

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Yup Vermont the catch and release state, you all can come here sell drugs, use drugs, steal other peoples things and its ok.Tom where do you live so when these non-violent offenders are released they can come live next to you,sell their suff,and break in to your house to steal something that you worked hard for.
-- Posted by Born in Vermont on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 6:07 pm EST

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test
-- Posted by Catamount on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 4:15 pm EST

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The math doesn't add up.
-- Posted by Terry Ward on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 3:10 pm EST

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So Tom, what do you propose we do with habitual non-violent offenders?? Keep slapping their behinds and give them a glass of milk and cookies??
-- Posted by Hassen Bin Soabur on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 3:04 pm EST

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Actually it's the first smart thing politicians are proposing. Non-violent offenders shouldn't have been there in the first place!
-- Posted by Tom E. Canavan on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 2:55 pm EST

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If you're just going to arbitrarily release offenders, then what is the purpose of catching them in the first place? Cops are out there risking their lives. For what? But then no one ever said politicians were smart!.
-- Posted by John Jensen on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 1:23 pm EST

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Just a pipe dream, but can we release them with the condition that they leave the state never to return??
-- Posted by Hassen Bin Soabur on Thu, Mar 18, 2010, 12:08 pm EST

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