NCJ Number
152742
Date Published
1993
Length
34 pages
Annotation
The Nebraska Task Force on Prison Alternatives collected a large amount of information to identify alternatives that would protect the public, reintegrate offenders into society, and punish offenders.
Abstract
The Task Force used population statistics provided by the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, followed a logical sequence to examine prison overcrowding, and developed recommendations on how offenders could leave prison with a better chance for success. The Task Force found that, in February 1993, 2,593 adults were confined in institutions with a maximum design capacity of 1,706. The average cost to maintain an adult for 1 year in Nebraska correctional institutions totaled $18,345. This figure ranged from $11,470 for a community corrections facility to $19,916 for a maximum-security unit. The Task Force's Front- End committee considered programs that could be implemented to reduce the number of persons coming into the custody of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services without increasing public risk. The Institutions Committee considered policy recommendations that would reduce the prison population, while the Back-End Committee was primarily concerned with establishing goals that would move inmates through their sentences and speed their release from prison. The Community Corrections Committee looked at alternatives to incarceration. Specific recommendations made by each committee are outlined.