Fewer Prisoners–Here’s Why

Missouri’s prison population has dropped….and the number of former inmates who go back to prison is down..

Missouri started a new system two years ago that lets judges know the likelihood that someone would re-offend if they were put on probation or given a short shock-sentence instead of being put in prison for long terms.

In the year before the new system was started, the prison population went up by 855 inmates. Since the sentencing recommendations went into effect, the prison population has dropped by 865.

Supreme Court Judge Michael Wolff headed the commission that created the system. He says it works for criminals…and judges.

He says the new sentencing assessment report gives the judge better information on which to base a sentence for a particular offense and the likelihood the person will re-offend when released.

The study says 82 percent of sentences given in the last two years are within the terms suggested by the sentencing recommendation system. And it says the recidivism rate drops when the sentence is within those recommendations.