Where Does $49,000 for Each Inmate Go?
California spends four times as much per prisoner as Mississippi. Where does the money go?
California spends around $49,000 annually per adult inmate, nearly 4 times Mississippi, which spends $13,300. Where does the money go? A partial breakdown:
Continues Below
Continued From Above
|
Security |
$20,429 |
|
Medical services |
$7,669 |
|
Parole operations |
$4,436 |
|
Facility operations |
$3,938 |
|
Administration |
$2,871 |
|
Psychiatric services |
$1,403 |
|
Food |
$1,377 |
|
Education |
$687 |
|
Records |
$513 |
|
Vocational education |
$289 |
|
Inmate welfare fund |
$282 |
|
Clothing |
$152 |
|
Religion |
$53 |
|
Activities |
$23 |
|
Library |
$23 |
|
Transportation |
$15 |
|
Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics; California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; National Association of State Budget Officers |
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The Mojo Prison Guide Menu
- What Do Prisoners Make for Victoria's Secret?
- Which Works Better Behind Bars, Scuba or Buddha?
- How ex-felons are kept on society's margins
- Lose your ID, go to jail.
Comments
A huge book could and should be written regarding the prison system, overcrowding, abuses and money. Not only are the investors making a small fortune from incarcerating others, prosecutors are making their careers from manipulating the system and making a felony out of what should be a misdemeanor. Defense counsel misses an appealable, even reversible error and the defendant is procedurally barred from ever using the evidence to get himself out of prison. Justice has become a game that both sides jockey to win, without regard to guilt or innocence or the affect that a lengthy sentence has on the life of the convict or the family who loves him. OK is 28th in population and third in prison population. Is it any wonder since one man sits in prison for 90 years for possession of stolen property; another 247 years for stealing a basket of groceries; another has a life sentence for murder, his defense counsel had been disbarred 45 days before the trial. Still another is doing 213 years for raping a 13 years old girl, well no sympathy there, except the DNA didn't match the defendant's, but they couldn't find anyone else who might have done the crime. Can someone investigate OK? That's the only state left that requires the governor to sign each recommendation of release by the parole board. I've studied the OK system for more than ten years and every word I've said is true and can be proven.
