The ins and outs of controversial SB 91

As part of its ongoing meetings, the Mat-Su Opioid Task Force included a presentation on Alaska Senate Bill (SB) 91, commonly referred to the “Crime Reform Bill” at its Tuesday, Nov. 1 gathering.

Suzanne DiPietro--executive director of the Alaska Judicial Council (AJC), addressed those attending. She didn’t review all aspects of the 123-page document signed into law July 11 of this year. Rather, DiPietro reviewed many of the aspects as it relates to persons charged and/or convicted of less serious and non-violent crimes as well as public protection.

The AJC published a 20-page practitioner guide which offers a layman’s explanation of almost every major provision of the bill. In it, the AJC noted that between 2005-2014, Alaska’s prison population grew 27 percent, or nearly three times as fast as the resident population. The total corrections population, including those incarcerated and those on probation, grew 45 percent. Associated costs over the same time period increased from $184 million to $327 million.

Without a policy change, the number of inmates would outstrip the state’s ability to house them, short of opening a currently closed facility, by next year. The AJC stated overall inmate population increase through 2024 was anticipated to cost Alaska at least an additional $169 million. The Commission also stated that the reforms under SB 91 are expected to avert all anticipated prison growth projected through 2024 and reduce the average daily prison population by 13 percent.

Savings are estimated at $380 million in state spending. The figure breaks down to $169 million in averted costs and $211 million in net savings. Using a portion of those savings and 50 percent of anticipated legal marijuana sales tax revenues, the state will reinvest just under $99 million over six years into treatment services, pretrial services and supervision, violence prevention programs, and crime victim’s services.

DiPietro noted the commission spent exhaustive efforts reviewing current laws, guidelines, prison stays, fines and court costs, probation statistics, among other items. She said during the study period, length of prison stay increased in almost every category of crime. Additionally, DiPietro pointed out that almost 2/3’s of released prisoners are re-institutionalized within three years of getting out.

“A lot of people think we can do better than that,” DiPietro stated. “The commission looked at everything and thought we could do better.”

She said existing policies were not proving effective. As an example, DiPietro discussed common pretrial procedures used in the state’s court system. Pretrial refers to the processing time that someone is charged but not yet convicted, or as DiPietro noted, still innocent. She said the commission discovered many individuals were jailed while waiting for their turn in court to see if they would even advance in the court system.

DiPietro stated the commission discovered 28 percent of available jail beds were occupied by pretrial inmates. She said the current bail system is another area which needs significant addressing. A person facing a third-party custodian as part of bail obligations is much less likely to be released. DiPietro said the group also discovered that there is no statistical difference when a judge orders cash or unsecured bail as it relates to whether a charged person makes a court appearance.

DiPietro said the commission recommended focusing prison beds on serious and violent offenders, as opposed non-violent offenders or those with less serious charges. She said statistical data revealed that low-risk, non-violent offenders sent to prison actually do worse after release than those given other interventions such as community service. Therefore, SB 91 incorporates changes lessen and/or eliminate incarceration for low-level offenders instead focusing such use for high level offenders.

Another area where SB 91 institutes major changes is in drug possession crimes. Under the new guidelines, possession of drugs such as heroin and cocaine used to be a Class C felony in the state. DiPietro noted a Class C felony is still a very serious crime which could lead to significant jail time.

Statistically, DiPietro said Class C felony drug offenders averaged six months jail time. New guidelines now stipulate first and second time offenses as misdemeanors. She said they will have no felony record which can help rehabilitate and that judges will not impose active jail time first and second offenses.

Strengthening parole and probation supervision is another area of focus. Alaska’s Department of Corrections, DiPietro said, is working very hard training probation officers to change the way they supervise and in the process, become more effective. Other changes include additional opportunities for inmates to get out sooner on parole or probation, allowing geriatric inmates (60 and over who meet guidelines) release with restrictions.

DiPietro said it makes sense to incentive people so they can possibly be put off parole or probationary supervision.

“If doing everything they’re supposed to be doing, why do we still have them on parole or probation?” DiPietro asked.

She said statistics reveal that if an individual is going to violate parole or probation, they usually do it in the first six months and many within the first week.

“That’s what usually happens,” DiPietro said. She added that after one year, a person is much, much less likely to violate those terms. She said the commission questioned why continue probation for as long as eight years on someone who’s “danger time” has passed. She said it makes more sense to drop these individuals off probation so that the system can “front load” casework.

DiPietro said any court intervention needs to be swift, certain and proportionate. If they know that, she said statistics show an individual is more likely to conform to set conditions. DiPietro also said structures will be in place to give probation officers more tools to incentivize behavior and sanction administratively without remanding the case back to the court system. If it does, procedures will be in place to handle things more quickly.

For instance, there are new set caps for probation violations--three days maximum jail time for first offenders, five days for second, and 10 days for third-time violators. After that, DiPietro said, “...all bets are off and you’re in trouble.” She said it is a completely new way of doing business and that changes not going to happen overnight. Many of the provisions take effect January 2017.

Other parts of the bill improve and reinvesting in inmate reentry programming. The commission found that leads to a reduction in recidivism.

“There has to be a reinvestment, has to be savings,” DiPietro stated adding the commission will be measuring the outcomes. “We shouldn’t invest without getting what we thought we deserved.”

She emphasized the changes are not necessarily “...going to get us there. What will get us there is to increase public safety, doing evidence based intervention...not recidivate.”

DiPietro stressed SB 91 is not just about prison population reduction, but protecting public safety, which she said, weighed very heavy on the commission’s recommendations. The bill also sets aside $11 million for victim’ services and violence prevention programs. She said the bill is controversial, and the public “...is going to hear lots of stuff”. She said change can’t come without problems, adding the process will be very difficult.

DiPietro said there are “far-reaching and earth-shattering” changes that SB 91 will enact. At the same time, she said, there is a lot of misinformation out in the public. Most of the major sentencing guidelines changes will not take effect until January of 2018. Others start the first of next year. As the programs and changes stipulated by the bill unfold, Alaska’s legislature has directed the commission to keep painstaking statistics on all aspects and report back.

“We will see if this really works,” DiPietro concluded.

A copy of the Practitioner Guide which reviews all major bill components, can be found at http://www.ajc.state.ak.us/sites/default/files/imported/acjc/sb91guide9-30-16.pdf