Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 6, 1992 TAG: 9202060376
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: THOMAS BOYER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
SENATE REFUSES PRISONER RELEASE
The specter of Willie Horton appeared on the state Senate floor Wednesday, as election-conscious senators scuttled legislation that would have allowed some state prisoners to be released three months early.The bill, sponsored by Sen. Richard Holland, D-Isle of Wight, would have saved $6 million over two years, money Holland said could help pay for closer supervision of convicts on probation.
But the bill failed 21-18 on a largely party-line vote, as most Republicans joined rural Democrats to defeat it. Holland succeeded in having the bill returned to committee, keeping it technically alive.
The measure would have allowed the state Parole Board to release non-violent state prisoners three months ahead of their regular eligibility, as long as they were not serving time for sex or drug offenses. The board would have kept the option of denying parole altogether.
Holland said the measure would help alleviate jail overcrowding, possibly delay the need for a new state prison and provide money for the badly stretched parole system.
"I do not consider this legislation to be what some have termed `soft on crime,' " Holland said. "Society, in my judgment, will not be damaged or harmed."
Opponents argued just the opposite. Sen. Mark Earley, R-Chesapeake, noted that while violent offenders couldn't be released early under the bill, burglars and extortionists could. "In my community, burglary is probably one of the most feared crimes anywhere," he said. `I think [the bill] sends the wrong people out on the streets at the wrong time."
Others said they supported alternatives to incarceration, but that they should be implemented by a judge when a prisoner is sentenced, not after he's already in prison.
Sen. Henry Marsh, D-Richmond, urged senators to consider not just Willie Horton - the furloughed murderer who became the focus of Republican campaign ads in 1988 - but "Willie Taxpayer."
"Those of you who vote against this bill are sending a big bill to taxpayers this year, next year and the years ahead," he said. "If you really care about Willie Taxpayer, vote for this bill."
Senate Majority Leader Hunter Andrews accused opponents of playing politics: "The easiest thing to do is to vote against it," he said. "The hard thing is to take a stand for this bill."
\ YEA OR NAY\ ON EARLY RELEASES
\ IN FAVOR: Sens. Frank Nolen, D-New Hope; Jackson Reasor, D-Bluefield; Elliot Schewel, D-Lynchburg.
\ OPPOSED: Sens. Brandon Bell, R-Roanoke; Madison Marye, D-Shawsville; Malfourd\ Trumbo, R-Fincastle; William Wampler, R-Bristol; Virgil Goode, D-Rocky Mount.
Keywords:
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