Reducing Mississippi's incarceration rate, which is the second-highest in the United States, depends on reforming many aspects of the state's criminal justice system, a report released this month says.
The report, titled "Numbers Game: The Vicious Cycle of Incarceration in Mississippi's Criminal Justice System," describes a system that rewards the pursuit of low-level offenders and then incarcerates them far longer than necessary. Report authors Judith Greene and Patricia Allard detail the unusual severity of Mississippi's sentencing laws and how they contribute to a disproportionately high incarceration rate.
Representatives of the Mississippi ACLU and other social justice organizations spoke today at the state Capitol to call for the reforms outlined in the report, including replacing mandatory minimum-sentencing laws, restricting the use of confidential informants by law enforcement and improving the state's evaluation of law-enforcement task forces that span multiple jurisdictions.
Beginning in the mid-1990s, a wave of "tough-on-crime" legislation swept the United States, increasing incarceration rates. "Truth-in-sentencing" laws, which required prisoners to serve 85 percent of their sentence before becoming eligible for parole, ensured that as the criminal justice system shunted more people into jail, and that prisons held inmates for longer terms, further swelling the prison population.
Even in that environment, Mississippi's incarceration rate outpaced national and regional averages. From 1994 to 2007, the state's rate grew 105 percent. Meanwhile, the national rate grew 46 percent, and the rate for the southern region rose 51 percent.
Mississippi has relaxed its "truth-in-sentencing" laws since their initial passage. In 2001, state legislators approved a law making first-time, nonviolent offenders eligible for parole after serving 25 percent of their prison term. Then, in 2008, lawmakers expanded parole eligibility for illegal drug sales or possession under certain weight limits.
Still, the state's justice system punishes drug offenders more harshly than the nation as a whole. Nationwide, the average prison sentence for drug sales is 5.7 years; in Mississippi, the average is 10.4 years. Likewise, Mississippi's average sentence for drug possession is 7.2 years, compared to 4.5 years nationwide.
Greene and Allard argue that state lawmakers should replace the mandatory minimum sentences that currently govern drug possession and the broad range of terms for drug sales with a more flexible set of standards. Sentences for drug-related offenses should take into account a defendant's role in the crime, previous crimes and the quantity of drugs involved, they recommend.
Mississippi ACLU Executive Director Nsombi Lambright said that her organization would push for the report's recommendations at the state Legislature this year and in the coming years. State lawmakers have responded to efforts to reduce the state's prison population, especially when considering the benefits of a lower incarceration rate to the state's budget, she said.
"We feel confident that we're on the right track," Lambright said.
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