In The News.....

Jail, prison populations rise 2.6 percent
Justice Department says 56,428 inmates added in one year

Sunday, May 21, 2006; Posted: 4:31 p.m. EDT (20:31 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- More than 1,000 inmates were added to the nation's prisons and jails each week from June 2004 to June 2005, according to a report issued Sunday by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The 56,428 new inmates -- including both convicts and those awaiting trial -- added to the system over the 12-month period account for a 2.6 percent rise in the U.S. prison and jail population, according to a synopsis of the Bureau of Justice Statistics report.

Two-thirds of the nearly 2.2 million total inmates were in state or federal prisons, and the rest were in local jails.


I would bet a lot of them are petty b.s. crimes like posessing too much weed and petty theft. While I do think that if you do the crime you very well should havta do the time, I think a lot of laws (especially drug laws) are ridiculous. Montana's (yes that wasnt a typo) had the highest rise in inmamtes, realted to meth crimes and manufacturing. Im surpized considering here in Iowa, this state is known as being the meth capital of the US and the World. Meth runs rampant here.....you can find it anywhere, I could get some with maybe 1 or 2 phone calls right now....its that easy. Not that I would....hello loser. Whatever.

Just the other night here I heard a story here where they put a guy in jail for like a crazy amount of years over weed. I am NOT saying weed should be legal, but then again in NOT saying it should be illegal, thats for another arguement, but what I am saying is some laws just dont add up.

Bottom line? Too many people in jail....just like there may be too many people in Guantonimo.....you add it up.