LANSING, Mich. — A Michigan House committee heard testimony Tuesday on a set of bills that could shave time off prisoners' sentences, giving them a path forward.
Eligible inmates would earn so-called 'productivity credits' for completing certain programs like a high school diploma, GED, vocational training or a college degree.
The amount of time an inmate can earn is capped at 20% of their minimum sentence.
This would give them the opportunity to appear before the parole board sooner and make their case for release.
“It's about incentivizing people, incentivizing inmates to do the things necessary while incarcerated to become a more productive member of society when they are no longer incarcerated. Every single one of the inmates that this package impacts will be your neighbors at some point, every single one of them. So, the question is, how do we want these future neighbors to act? How do we what do we want them to be when they return home?” Rep. Bryan Posthumus said.
Democratic Rep. Tyrone Carter said, “Now I took my car to the carwash yesterday, I would be upset if I had driven through the carwash and it came out just as dirty or not clean. That's what we're trying to do. If we're going to send people in the front door, we have an obligation to make sure that they come out better than they did when they exit.”
There are certain crimes that would not be eligible for this program like sex offenses, human trafficking and murder.
But not everyone is on board.
Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Getting says this legislation is an attack on Michigan's Truth in Sentencing law which requires inmates to serve their entire minimum sentence before being considered for parole.
“When a victim is told their abuser, the person who shot them, the person who broke into their home will serve 10 years in prison as a minimum sentence, or maybe eight, or maybe somewhere between eight and 10. Those are different things. Providing certainty to our victims of violent crimes is imperative to their trust in the system and is imperative to their sense of security,” argued Getting.
There's also a question of if this package overrides a voter-initiated law from 1978.
If that's the case, there would need to be a 3/4ths vote in both chambers to amend or repeal that law.
For now, though, this bill package will remain with the House Criminal Justice Committee for consideration.
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