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The Michigan Messenger going forward

By Staff Report | 11.16.11

I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]

Colorado-based abstinence program provided false and misleading information to Michigan students

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By Todd A. Heywood | 11.16.11

An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.

Class action lawsuit filed against MERS over unpaid taxes

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By Todd A. Heywood | 11.15.11

Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.

Schuette fights important mercury regulations

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By Eartha Jane Melzer | 11.14.11

Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.

Granholm proposes bringing back time off for good behavior

By Eartha Jane Melzer | 02.16.10 | 11:52 am

An aspect of Governor Granholm’s budget proposal that is already drawing controversy is the plan to reduce Department of Corrections costs by allowing well behaved inmates to get out of jail earlier, the Detroit Free Press reports.

Under this plan inmates would be awarded credit for each misconduct free month, a practice that prison officials say is common across the country and even in Michigan’s county jails.

In Michigan early release for good behavior was phased out by a 1978 ballot measure lead by then Oakland County Prosecutor L. Brooks Patterson.

Granholm said her goal is to bring Michigan’s overall incarceration rate, still above the national average, in line with that of other states, especially in the upper Midwest. Reinstating good time, and a companion plan to move nearly 2,000 other inmates into halfway houses or tether programs as they near their release dates, would save $130 million in 2011, Granholm said.

Because it was eliminated by ballot measure, reinstating time off for good behavior will require 75 percent support in the House and Senate.

Patterson, now Oakland County Executive, has vowed to fight the change.

Comments

  • mznomer

    “This churning of large numbers of individuals between prisons and communities has a tremendously destabilizing impact on already disadvantaged communities. In fact, research suggests that such high concentrations of returning prisoners and the movement of individuals in and out of prison actually drives crime rates up in these disadvantaged communities.”

    “Some important facts about the prison population:

    • 80 percent have a history of substance abuse.

    • 16 percent are diagnosed with a mental illness. Prisoners are two to four times more likely to be schizophrenic, depressed, bipolar, or suffering from post traumatic stress disorder than the general population.

    Of teens in juvenile detention centers, nearly 66 percent of boys and 75 percent of girls have at least one psychiatric disorder.

    Seventy-three percent of mentally ill inmates also suffer from a co-occurring substance abuse disorder.

    • Many already are or will become homeless. For example, a study of the New York prison system found that 11 percent of released prisoners entered a homeless shelter within two years of release.

    • 25 percent of the US population currently living with HIV or AIDS was released from prison within the last year. Overall, 2 to 3 percent of the prison population has HIV or AIDS. The rate of state prisoners testing positive for HIV is five to seven times greater than in the general population.

    • 18 percent have hepatitis C. The rate of prisoners infected with hepatitis C is nine to ten times higher than the general public.

    • 7 percent have tuberculosis.

    • 70 percent are high school dropouts and roughly half are functionally illiterate.

    • Most are unemployed upon release. (Nearly 75 percent were employed prior to incarceration. Of these, about half were employed full-time.)

    • Earning potential for ex-inmates drops 10-20 percent compared to what they were earning prior to incarceration.

    • 55 percent of males and 65 percent of females in prison have minor children.

    • Female offenders confront serious physical and mental health issues (over 60 percent have a history of physical or sexual abuse) and long-term substance abuse issues.”

    National Governors Conference For Best Practices
    The Challenges and Impacts of Prisoner Reentry – 11/4/4

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