News and Blogs Together, Friday, May 11, 2007

• Gotta be a back story to this, a WA DOC decision to increase caseloads for P&P officers overseeing sex offenders and to possibly jeopardize what seems to be a popular and successful program of intensive supervision. No budget problems claimed, so that leaves the old reliable "the officers with regular caseloads got jealous, started sniping, and cowed the leadership" standby. (Early candidate for Understatement of the Year: "It doesn't feel like they're looking at the ramifications. It's sort of 'we'll see what happens when it happens' and that's not really good practice," said Patricia Turner, a community corrections officer in Seattle.
• Corey Rayburn Yung at Sex Crimes Blog adds to the recent story about virtual child abuse in Second Life the possibility that a real child might be the one playing the child and being virtually abused. Does that make it illegal? Well, does it?
• The new MA gov has a $15m. anti-crime package, more cops on the street, support for repealing the state's man-mins (mandatory minimums). Nothing to brag about yet, but this quote from the MA Speaker of the House was right on: "Mandatory minimum sentences aren't working, and we're paying for the mistakes we made in the past," said DiMasi. "We need to do more. Young people need to have a chance in life to turn away from the streets, not turn to the streets." (h/t Sentencing Law and Policy)
• Grits for Breakfast finds a conservative blog also arguing for second chance opportunities for prisoners, taking the Bible seriously. Grits thinks this may portend changing attitudes in his state about incarceration. I'll have to believe it to see it, but he deserves a better state.
• Norway has joined Sweden in legalizing prostitution but making it illegal to employ one, IOW, making the johns the guilty parties, which on Planet Fair would have been the way it's always been. But that's in a universe far, far away . . . . (h/t Talk Left)
• Matthew Bowen at Prevention Works has a very thoughtful and useful post on that recent Urban Institute report on reentry experiences in Cleveland that is worth your time. After you finish reading all the stuff here.
• CA "policymakers" are getting a taste of what could be facing them for the next several years on their corr sent policy. The fed receiver tasked (sorry for the verb) with improving the state prison healthcare has dropped a good plan on them, meaning they have to come up with funds and not shunt everything off anymore. Apparently neither side is completely happy but the right people are whining so it must be pretty good. And the estimable Sen. Romero there has welcomed "the new sheriff in town" and told the irresponsibles "get over it." Full details in the infobox for those of you into details.
• Ingo Keilitz at Made2Measure has a nice piece up on the use of performance dashboards in court management, with applications to other agencies as well. If you don't know what a performance dashboard is, even better. Go find out.
• Finally, speaking of good things to read, Corrections Community, NIC's blog, alerts us to a report on inmate literacy from the National Center for Education Statistics. Sounds like it covers everything you could want to know and more. Perfect for a warm spring evening. Enjoy.