MI- Sex offenders create controversy in Detroit prisons

6-18-2009 Michigan:

It’s not often that inmates object to the release of other prisoners, but it’s happening in Detroit. Some inmates at the Ryan and Mound prisons have told me they’re upset that the two east-side Detroit prisons have been turned into re-entry sites for what they call “tree jumpers” and other sex offenders.

To make room for these inmates, prisoners already there are getting transferred — “riding out” — to prisons over the bridge and out in the sticks. In some cases, these prisons are hundreds of miles from their loved ones and families, who often don’t have vehicles or the resources to get there.

There’s a racial side to this, too. Historically, inmates at Mound and Ryan have been mostly African American, with families living nearby. These prisons were spots that Detroit inmates would try their best to get to and, with good conduct records, often did. Now, those inmates are getting moved elsewhere, and Ryan and Mound, they say, are filling up with sex offenders who are mostly white.

Inmates at Mound and Ryan have told me they’re worried about children. It’s clear that sex offenders are at the bottom of the inmate hierarchy. Many inmates have the same feelings and biases toward sex offenders as do other people.

The Michigan Department of Corrections, looking to reduce its population by 3,500 this year, is taking a hard look at all of the 12,000 inmates who have served their minimum sentences and are eligible for parole. Michigan prisons hold thousands of inmates who have served their sentences and could be safely released.

But the Parole Board is NOT taking a special look at sex offenders, which make up about 20% of the state’s nearly 50,000 inmates. It's true, though, that many inmates past their earliest release date are sex offenders. The reason is simple: Up to now, the Parole Board turned down almost every sex offender that came before it -- no matter what. So there’s a backlog of inmates with sexual offenses who are eligible for release, and are rated a low risk to re-offend.

Recidivism rates for sexual offenders are, as a whole, actually lower than those for other categories of crimes. Pedophiles make up only a small share of sexual offenders. Even a 17-year-old boy who had sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend is categorized as a sex offender and put on the sex offenders’ registry for life.

The Department of Corrections probably could have avoided this controversy if it hadn’t chosen Mound and Ryan — the only prisons in Detroit — for statewide re-entry sites. Most of the men in those prisons had families here. Maintaining family ties is important to rehabilitation and successful re-entry. ..Source.. by JEFF GERRITT