FRANKFORT, Ky.-- The prison population in Kentucky has increased significantly, and continues to do so. Justice Cabinet Secretary John Tilley puts it this way: the population has increased by about 700% since the '70s, although the entire state population has increased by 38%. Tilley says prison reforms should cut the population in half, if only they could be passed by the General Assembly.
- Secretary of the Justice Cabinet John Tilley says the population of the incarcerated has grown by 700% over several decades; that amounts to about 24,000 inmates today.
- According to data from the Department of Corrections, 38% of the population is serving time for crimes classified as property and drug.
- Tilley wants prison reform to include raising the dollar amount threshold that classifies stealing a felony, and lessening sentences for drug crimes.
"This should be a wake-up call and alarm to every Kentuckian to say we have far too many people in our prisons- and keep this in mind, this is in a country that incarcerates far more than any other in the civilized world," says Tilley.
Although Tilley points to a slight decrease in the recidivism rate, by 2%, he says there are more people recommitting and re-entering the system than there are new inmates coming in.
According to data from the Department of Corrections, 38% of crimes people are serving time for are property and drug offenses. So, Tilley suggests raising the threshold in dollar amount that classifies stealing a felony, and making drug possession a misdemeanor.
"I think we've come to a point in our state, and it's been this way for years, where we have to distinguish who we're mad at, and who we're afraid of. Those we're afraid of need to be segregated in a prison and need to serve a sentence. Those we're mad at can be handled safely in the community with much better results," Tilley says.