ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, July 23, 1996 TAG: 9607230066
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.
SOURCE: The New York Times
A new city program here will have inmates paying for their crime twice - first by serving time, then by paying $40 for every day they are in jail.
``I came to the conclusion that the entire city was being victimized to the tune of $20 million a year,'' said City Councilman Sam Bregman, who sponsored the bill for the 18-month pilot program. ``There is no reason the taxpayers should be burdened with this cost.''
Albuquerque is one of the first municipalities in the nation to start charging people convicted of misdemeanor offenses for their jail time. States such as Missouri and Connecticut require prisoners to reimburse the state for their imprisonment, health care and state-provided lawyers.
Under the Albuquerque plan that began July1, only those who are convicted of misdemeanors will be charged for their stay at any one of the three city-run detention facilities in Bernalillo County, N.M.
The $40 daily fee was based on theoretically paying prisoners for community service work to pay their tabs at $5 per hour for eight hours a day. Jail officials estimate a daily cost of $64 to house each prisoner and that the average stay for an inmate is nine days.
``People who commit crimes should help pay for services the city is forced to provide,'' said Bregman, who is also an assistant district attorney. ``It's like I have to pay my water bill to have that service.''
However, critics believe that criminals are already paying for their crimes by doing time and that the majority cannot afford to pay.
``Mr. Bregman is assuming these people can pay,'' said Jennie Lusk, executive director for the local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Lusk said the ACLU wanted to know what the city planned to do about people who cannot pay or work off the bill. ``It's like a debtor's prison where the rich will get out and the poor won't.''
Anyone who owes for a jail stay can choose between community service work and paying in cash. Bregman said if the city cannot collect the debts, it will turn them over to a collection agency.
``We may spend more in administration costs trying to recoup the fees than what we would actually collect,'' said City Council President Steve Gallegos, the only dissenting vote. ``The poverty rate among inmates is extremely high, and they may have to go back to crime to pay the bill off.''
Indeed, some inmates said crime would have to pay.
``There is no way I can pay unless I go do another crime,'' said Gary Osborne, 28, who is serving time for one crime and awaiting sentencing for another. ``I might just do something stupid so I can get these people off my back.''
For now, Osborne has chosen to pay off his running tab by working in the kitchen at the downtown detention center. According to Gallegos, Osborne is among 30 percent of the prison population that is considered a minimum security risk and allowed to do supervised work inside or outside the prison.
While jail officials are contemplating how they would spend any additional money they acquire from the program, others are questioning how much money would truly be raised.
In 1995, 60 percent of the 45,000 people who were booked at city-run facilities were convicted of their crimes, Bregman said. By his calculations, the city could reap anywhere from $1.6 million to $8.5 million a year, depending on the criminals' ability to pay.
LENGTH: Medium: 65 linesby CNB