NCJ Number
80206
Date Published
1978
Length
0 pages
Annotation
Richard Velde, former head of LEAA, and Edmund G. (Pat) Brown, former Governor of California, discuss the increase in crime, various approaches to controlling the situation, and other concerns of the criminal justice system in America.
Abstract
Velde observes that in its first 10 years, LEAA has spent $5.1 billion in trying to reach the ultimate goal of improving the quality of American life by making the country as crime-free as possible. However, many causes of crime, such as unemployment, social problems, and lack of sufficient education, cannot be improved by the criminal justice system. Governor Brown notes that there has been an enormous increase in crime in the past 20 years. He discusses his experiences in handling crime when he was governor, including decisions he made in commuting death sentences to life sentences. The meeting concludes with a question and answer period. Subjects discussed cover the need for increased employment, handgun control, career criminal programs sponsored by LEAA, the relationship of violence on television to real crime, the appropriate punishment for prostitution, the criteria for awarding LEAA grants, and the Government's domestic intelligence operations conducted against American citizens.