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Three Strikes Law There Are Numerous Problems Essay

Three Strikes Law There are numerous problems associated with the prison system in the state of California. More than a few of these problems are directly caused by the state's infamous Three Strikes legislation -- in which individuals who receive three felonies are sentenced to 25 years to a life term in prison. In codifying the problems related to the state's prison system as identified by the essay written by the politician who was eligible for reelection, it becomes apparent that the most salient of these are the huge expense associated with quartering so many prisoners, overcrowding, and a lack of rehabilitation.

In 2010, the state spent a total of nearly 8 billion dollars to quarter, feed, and provide healthcare for prisoners, which represents a 12.2 percentage of costs outside of the state budget (Vera, 2012). These budgetary constraints are due in large part to the fact that the prisons are egregiously overcrowded, with the state's prisons at close to 200% capacity in 2011 (Skolnick, 2011). Additionally, the amendment to the Three Strikes law as provided by proposition 36 (which was passed in 2012) demonstrates how ineffective the current prison system is in reforming prisoners. This amendment enables prisoners convicted of third strike that is not serious or violent to not receive a 25 to life sentence. It is telling that since Proposition 36 was passed, crime in California has slightly increased. Additionally, the politician's essay reveals the fact that frequently incarceration is a place in which criminals can congregate and refine their tactics and strategies for future criminal endeavors.

The nature of this program, which will be voluntary, will be partly corrective and partly a training program to endow prisoners with marketable job skills and general survival skills to teach them to manage independently in the world today. Prisoners must demonstrate that they can get along with one another in an orderly, productive fashion while taking classes that teach them skills related to computers, technology, and other basic skills related to jobs today. Prisoners must demonstrate a degree of punctuality and a conformity to standard normative behavior that is no-aggressive and honest while learning the essential techniques they will need to live independent of a prison system. They will also enroll in the Affordable Health Care Act (which provides cheaper health insurance) (Ireland, 2001) (cite) and take basic culinary classes. Subsidized housing options will also be presented to them so that they can obtain a means to support themselves. This policy change will another amendment to the Three Strikes law and would be filed under Proposition 37.
The information I can provide to the community and the state legislature to implement such a policy will be related to the aforementioned problems discussed earlier in this document. I would include information about the…

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References

Ireland, J. (2001). "Pros & Cons of Free Universal Healthcare." www.livestrong.com.

Retrieved from http://www.livestrong.com/article/30692-pros-cons-universal-health/#ixzz1t2lGiOFK//

Rodriguez, S. (2013). California prison conditions driving prisoners to suicide. Solitary Watch. Retrieved from http://solitarywatch.com/2013/03/15/california-prison-conditions-driving-prisoners-to-suicide/

Skolnick, A. (2011). Runaway Prison Costs Thrash State Budgets. The Fiscal Times, 9 Feb 2011. Retrieved from http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2011/02/09/Runaway-Prison-Costs-Thrash-State-Budgets
VERA Institute of Justice (2012). The Price Of Prisons: California. Fact Sheet. Jan 2012. Retrieved from http://www.vera.org/files/price-of-prisons-california-fact-sheet.pdf
Yeung, B. (2010). "California DC report looks at recidivism rates." www.correctionsone.com. Retrieved from http://www.correctionsone.com/re-entry-and-recidivism/articles/2865158-California-DOC-report-looks-at-recidivism-rates/
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