Crime Reduction

Some "Smart on Crime" Reforms that are Working

December 7, 2011
Necessitated by harsh economic times and encouraged by declines in crime rates, a number of states have made significant strides in reducing the number of people in prisons and jails and cutting spending while maintaining public safety.

Article by Denise Welch

Considerable Common Ground: Collaborating to Create Safety

September 23, 2011
Crime Victims and Survivors want to ensure that what happened to them does not happen to another. We discuss the opposition of Measure 73 and what PSJ brought forth to the legislative session in support of Alternative ways to increase public safety.

Article by Kerry Naughton

ACLU: Reduce Crime by Reducing Prison Sentences

August 25, 2011
A report from the American Civil Liberties Union says several U.S. states have reduced crime – and saved money – by putting fewer people behind bars. (VOA)

ACLU: Reduce Crime by Reducing Prison Sentences

Trend to Lighten Harsh Sentences Catches On in Conservative States

August 25, 2011
Fanned by the financial crisis, a wave of sentencing and parole reforms is gaining force as it sweeps across the United States, reversing a trend of “tough on crime” policies that drove the nation’s incarceration rate to the highest — and most costly — level in the developed world (NYT)

Trend to Lighten Harsh Sentences Catches On in Conservative States

The ‘Wet House’ Where Alcoholics Can Keep Drinking

May 4, 2011
St. Andrew's is a facility focused on reducing some of the harm that results for people who struggle to overcome their addiction. Its "housing first" approach provides individuals with stable housing without first requiring they get sober. (NY Times)

The ‘Wet House’ Where Alcoholics Can Keep Drinking

States Help Ex-Inmates Find Jobs

February 1, 2011
Faced with huge budget gaps and high unemployment, several states are addressing both issues with a surprising strategy: helping former prisoners find jobs to keep them from ending up back in prison. (New York Times)

States Help Ex-Inmates Find Jobs

By Steven Greenhouse, The New York Times

Rethinking Public Safety Spending Strategies

December 15, 2010
PSJ's Associate Director Shannon Wight asks: At what point will this country's expensive experiment with mass incarceration end? Her answer: We have reached the tipping point; we must focus on real public safety now and not mass incarceration at any cost.

Article by Shannon Wight 

Crime Rate in Oregon Drops to Lowest Rate in Four Decades

September 13, 2010
Despite high unemployment, crime rates across Oregon are the lowest they've been in forty years, due largely to an aging population and advanced meth laws. And the state didn't have to build prisons to achieve it (Oregonian).

 

Guest Viewpoint: Groups that aid criminal offenders help keep us all safer

July 12, 2010
Paul Solomon, PSJ's board chairman and Sponsors' asst. executive director, and Ron Chase, Sponsors' executive director, respond to tough-on-crime advocate Josh Marquis' claims that Oregon needs mandatory minimum sentences.

Guest Viewpoint: Groups that aid criminal offenders help keep us all safer

Regression and Reform in Oregon

April 23, 2010
Crime has been in a steady decline since the mid-1990s while corrections' costs have continued to climb. Was the Safety and Savings Act of 2009 motivated by economics only - or was it indicative of a larger change in the political landscape around public safety in Oregon?

Article by Erika Spaet and Shannon Wight

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