The Health Impacts of Locking People Up without a New Conviction

press release: Join us for this special event that will examine the consequences of excessive revocations in Wisconsin. Former Wisconsin Public Radio Criminal Justice Reporter Gil Halsted will be the moderator. At this forum, civil rights leaders, EXPO leaders, UW-Madison Sociology Professor Pamela Oliver, and State Representative Evan Goyke will present on various aspects of the revocation process in Wisconsin. Candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor have been invited and will be given an opportunity to respond.

More than 4,500 people are currently incarcerated in Wisconsin prisons for a revocation without a new conviction. Each year, thousands of others are held temporarily in county jails or the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility (MSDF) while their agents investigate alleged rule violations. Wisconsin could literally close MSDF and other prisons by transforming its unjust revocation process and by reducing excessive community supervision sentences.

Both red and blue states have taken major steps to dramatically cut back on crimeless revocations. As a result, they are closing prisons, not thinking about building more.

Visit http://wisdomwisconsin.org/there-should-be-no-time-without-a-crime/ for information about this issue. Seven states recently enacted policies that enabled them to reduce both rates of re-incarceration for revocations and levels of violent crime. Visit https://csgjusticecenter.org/nrrc/publications/reducing-recidivism-states-deliver-results-2017/ for information.

Confirmed reservations from candidates:

Democratic Candidates for Governor

Matt Flynn: https://www.facebook.com/ForwardWFlynn/

Mike McCabe: https://www.facebook.com/bluejeansgov/

Mahlon Mitchell: https://www.facebook.com/MahlonMitchell

Kelda Roys: https://www.facebook.com/keldaroys/

Dana Wachs: https://www.facebook.com/DanaJWachs/

Andy Gronik: https://www.facebook.com/AndyGronik/

Jeff Rumbaugh: https://www.facebook.com/governorwisconsin2018/

Kathleen Vinehout is expected to be in session but will attend if her schedule permits.

Republican Candidates for Governor

Ryan Cason

Candidates for Lieutenant Governor

Mandela Barnes: https://www.facebook.com/theothermandela/

“Rather than build new prisons, our state chose to invest in treatment and diversion alternatives. These investments have helped to reduce technical revocations from parole and probation and have provided additional treatment capacity, resulting in a reduction of our prison population by 10,000 people. These approaches—along with others—continue to pay dividends: we have closed four prisons since 2011 and plan to close four more this summer.” BRYAN COLLIER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE