The Justice Policy Institute released an analysis on May 24, 2010 that showed that the violent crime rate in 2009 dropped by 5.5%. The analysis was based on statistics from the FBI’S Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report, which also showed property crime was down 4.9% in the same year. The news that a drop in crime conformed with a decrease in incarceration rates goes against the general consensus that in order to curb crime imprisonment is necessary. The prison population is still growing , but more slowly than rates from previous years.
The Director of the Justice Policy Institute, Tracy Velazquez, remarked that. “Increased incarceration does not increase public safety.”, a radical departure from conventional thinking. One of the reasons that the incarceration rate is not rapidly increasing is because states are looking for ways to slash their budgets. Incarceration costs take a big chunk out of most state budgets, so seeking alternatives to incarceration is a being viewed as a way to save taxpayer dollars.
Other ways to decrease incarceration and improve public safety, according to JPI, is to use the funds allocated for more police and imprisonment on “investing in people” through employment opportunities, treatment for dug addiction, and educational and community programs.
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