the crime report

The Illinois prisons chief who took the blame for a botched prisoner early release program under Gov. Pat Quinn is resigning as the Democratic governor seeks to stem the political damage from an election-year controversy, reports the Chicago Tribune. Michael Randle is leaving Sept. 17 to “pursue a new opportunity” out of state. Acting on Quinn’s general instructions to cut costs, Randle started a program last September that sped up the rate prisoners could earn good time credit. That lead to 1,745 inmates being let out an average of 36 days before the end of their sentence. Some convicts were released almost immediately, before corrections officials could assess their rehabilitation needs. And some of those released early went on to commit additional crimes. (more…)

The former New York state prison director who took every Friday off for 17 years also wrongfully traded gifts and food for millions of dollars in state purchases, reports the Albany Times-Union. For 13 years until 2008, Howard Dean and prison staff received free meals from at least two food vendors that had $2.5 million in purchases with the Food Production Center, which Dean directed, said state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and Inspector General Joseph Fisch. Fisch likened the actions of Dean to extortion, while the comptroller cited a “culture of acceptance” of corruption. (more…)

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The Crime Report talks funding, inertia and over-incarceration with the man who heads Vera Institute of Justice’s NOLA office.

It’s rare for an entire city to get a do-over, but after Hurricane Katrina roared through New Orleans and the levees gave way, the Crescent City became ground zero for policy makers and visionaries wanting to transform the city’s agencies and social structures.

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While the Justice Department waits to impose new correction standards on sexual violence, a new national survey shows that rape in prison is a growing problem.

The numbers are in: Since 2007, the number of reported prison rapes has increased by 4,000. Female offenders are twice as likely to be sexually victimized as males and two-thirds of male inmates have been victimized by female staff, according to a Bureau of Justice Statistics survey released today. Although some believe the figures underestimate the problem, the report is widely believed to be the most accurate survey of prison sexual violence to date.

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