Today, the Georgia Public Policy Foundation released a new report, “Peach State Criminal Justice: Controlling Costs, Protecting the Public,” by Right on Crime Senior Advisers, Marc Levin and Vikrant P. Reddy. The issue analysis reviews the recommendations made by the Special Council on Criminal Justice Reform for Georgians and discusses how commonsense adjustments to the criminal justice system have assisted other states in ensuring public safety, holding offenders accountable and controlling corrections costs.
“In Georgia and across the nation, conservatives are uniting behind the idea that we can increase public safety and provide restitution for victims while reducing the burden on taxpayers,” said Kelly McCutchen, president and CEO of the Foundation and a Right on Crime signatory. “It’s time to hold the criminal justice system accountable and the recommendations discussed in this paper truly think outside the cell and provide an excellent step toward reform.”
McCutchen has signed Right on Crime’s Statement of Principles. He joins national signatories including former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Reagan Attorney General Ed Meese, as well as leaders in Georgia including the founder of the Faith and Freedom Coalition Ralph Reed, former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson, former Acting U.S. Associate Attorney General Joe Whitley, and president of the Georgia Family Council Randy Hicks.
“Georgians simply can’t build their way out of the state’s prison problems,” said Senior Policy Adviser to Right on Crime and Director of the Center for Effective Justice at the Texas Public Policy Foundation Marc Levin, the paper’s co-author. “Rather than asking taxpayers to construct another costly prison facility, policymakers should recognize that community corrections programs that are based on evidence, customized to the risk level of each offender, and subjected to rigorous performance measures offer a better option for holding nonviolent offenders accountable and turning them into productive taxpayers.”
To view the full report, click here.