Drug treatment boost would lead to release of Wisconsin inmates

MADISON - Hundreds more prisoners could get treatment for drug abuse and an early release from prison if successful, under Gov. Scott Walker's budget bill.

The proposal applies only to those who have been singled out for the long-standing program by a judge at their sentencing. But right now  there are not enough resources to handle all those prisoners.

The GOP governor's proposal would provide more treatment and allow more of the inmates already waiting in line for the program to enter and complete it.

Walker made his name as a tough-on-crime lawmaker and one of his first acts as governor in 2011 was to repeal an expansion of the Earned Release Program approved by his Democratic predecessor, Jim Doyle, who sought to make more prisoners eligible for early release.

But since then, more and more of the inmates who are still allowed in the program have been completing it.

"I want to reinforce the point that the budget provision doesn’t change sentences because eligibility for the program is determined by a judge, not the state," Walker spokesman Tom Evenson said.

The program is available only to inmates who committed nonviolent crimes and who are approved for it by a judge, typically at sentencing. But if inmates don't get access to the treatment inside the prison system, then they don't leave early.

For those who complete treatment and get released from prison early, the state adds that time to their period of supervision in their community. Their total time under state supervision doesn't change, just their time behind bars.

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In 2012, 706 inmates completed the earned release program, Department of Corrections spokesman Tristan Cook said. But last year, 1,450 prisoners completed it — more than doubling the number in just four years.

He said he did not know the average length of early release achieved by those inmates.

Currently, more than 700 inmates are enrolled in the program.

Walker's proposal would:

• Hire 16 full-time staff to expand the program at the handful of state prisons carrying it, reaching 250 more inmates a year at a cost of $1.8 million over the next two years. 
• Result in a saving of $5.5 million on prison costs over those two years due to inmates being released. That means taxpayers would save a net $3.7 million by adding the treatment staff. 
• Separately add 25 alcohol and substance abuse providers to handle an expected increase in inmates being convicted under tougher drunk driving provisions passed two years ago. 

The proposal was welcomed as a first step by Rep. Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee), a former public defender who is worried about the costs of the longer drunken driving sentences and of Walker's separate budget proposal to shrink the state's eight-person parole agency to a single worker.

"Why just 250 people?" Goyke asked. "Why wouldn't you expand it further?"

But that's not the way that Rep. Joe Sanfelippo (R-New Berlin) looks at it. He is concerned about the rise of violent crimes in and around the city and has been looking at legislation to stiffen penalties for offenses such as carjacking.

Sanfelippo didn't rule out taking steps to increase treatment for substance abuse for nonviolent offenders, saying it could help people to break the cycle of crime and punishment.

"It's probably a good thing to get more people the treatment that they need," he said.

But he was wary of putting more inmates back on the streets earlier, saying taxpayer money saved by the prisons might not make up for the increased risks to the public. As Walker seeks to pass his budget through the Legislature in the coming months, it's clear that conservatives such as Sanfelippo will be looking carefully at the earned release increase.

"I get very cautious when we want to start rushing people through the system," he said.