A one-night stay? Ninety dollars. Need to see a doctor? Ten bucks. Want toilet paper? Pay for it yourself.
In the ever-widening search for extra income during desperate economic times, some elected officials are embracing a new idea: making inmates pay their debt to society not only in hard time, but also in cold, hard cash.
In New York, GOP Assemblyman James Tedisco introduced a bill that would charge wealthy criminals $90 a day for room and board at state prisons.
Dubbed the “Madoff Bill,” after billion-dollar Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff, the legislation is designed to ease the $1 billion annual cost of incarcerating prisoners.
“This concept says if you can afford it, or even some of it, you’re going to help the beleaguered taxpayers who play by the rules,” Tedisco said.
In Arizona’s Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, Sheriff Joe Arpaio calls himself America’s toughest sheriff and makes prisoners sleep in tents in 100-degree-plus heat.
Earlier this year, he announced that inmates would be charged $1.25 per day for meals. His decision followed months of food strikes staged by inmates who complained of being fed green bologna and moldy bread.
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This would work in Canada , the price could be deducted from the daily pay the prisoners get from us taxpayers.
As long as there isn’t a 100% expectation to collect, this is reasonable. How many gangsters are arrested behind the wheel of a brand new SUV? That vehicle could be easily sold with the proceeds going towards prison fees. Same with a Madoff-type character and his fancy home. Of course creditors would have first shot at assets in the latter case so this might not always work; however tallying a bill for services used would give proper meaning to a prisoner having to pay “debt” to a society.
Another thing – instead of letting prisoners out early for good behaviour, maybe some of the bill can be forgiven instead?
It makes too much sense… I’m sure someone will punch holes in the concept…
As I heard it, the reason for daily pay is to teach prisoners good habits… work rewarded by pay is pretty fundamental… Unfortunately, when they hit regular society and the government grabs half of the salary through taxation, the lesson falls flat…