Monday, June 27, 2005

Dying on our dime

Doc Berman at Sentencing Law and Policy refers us to bellwether stories from California and Arizona about how long prison sentences are boosting the cost of medical care for treating elderly prisoners. To blame in California: the infamous "three strikes" law that forbids parole for repeat offenders.

Texas, which operates a separate facility housing elderly offenders called the Estelle unit, has been dealing with this growing cost driver for years. See this Criminal Justice Policy Council report (pdf) on the subject from 1999, which presages many issues raised in these articles.

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