SEIU Throwing High, Hard Pitch at GOP Legislators
Submitted by Anthony Fossaceca on Tue, 10/13/2009 - 11:51am.
As the budget crisis continues to grow (again), SEIU came out firing with a new :30 spot that isn't talking about library cuts or services for seniors. Oh, no no no, my friends. This one is throwing heat and not wasting any time getting to the point. If the Ohio GOP doesn't act to implement the Strickland Plan, prisons will release criminals and your family will be at risk.
You've got to believe the GOP is preparing to counter with ads that claim the Governor's budget plan includes "death panels."
Looks more like a screwball to me...
How disappointing that SEIU would resort to scare tactics like this.
Rapists, murderers and child molesters are not being released in Ohio because of overcrowding, and I doubt very much that they will ever be. Even in states that have had to release offenders early because of overcrowding, they are low-level non-violent offenders.
If we are truly concerned about the overcrowding crisis in Ohio's prisons, we need to look at ways of increasing opportunity for rehabilitation and diversion programming for low level offenders. Around 60% of the current Ohio prison population is incarcerated for only 12 months or less, often for offenses like minor drug violations or not paying child support. These people, by and large, do not belong in jail in the first place and jailing them only increases their likelihood of joining the cycle of incarceration that has caused our prison overpopulation.
House Leadership has repeatedly indicated they are not interested in pushing these types of reforms right now, even as our prison population has continued to balloon and budget scares plague the state.
It looks as though SEIU is more concerned with keeping a few prison guard and parole officer jobs rather than exploring meaningful criminal justice reform. And now they are pandering to the lowest common denominator by this tabloid-style commercial that has almost no basis in fact. What a shame.
Prisons
I am actually in favor of releasing prisoners. We lock up way too many people as it is.
Maybe we can look at people serving under mandatory minimums for possession?