2008 Woodie Awards
News Briefs
The Associated Press
Issue date: 2/14/08 Section: News
Local
South Carolina's Supreme Court chief justice asked lawmakers on Wednesday to consider revamping the state's sentencing laws, suggesting that changes made to North Carolina's system have saved that state money and made citizens safer.
"Sentencing in the United States is a national problem," Chief Justice Jean Toal told a joint session of the House and Senate during her annual address. "The costs of incarceration are a major drain, not only on state resources but on local government."
Some of Toal's proposals, including keeping violent criminals behind bars longer, echoed ideas supported by state Attorney General Henry McMaster. In 2006, McMaster told lawmakers studying South Carolina's criminal justice system that abolishing parole for serious crimes would give victims and the public peace of mind in knowing precisely when criminals would be released from prison.
State prisons director Jon Ozmint has spoken out against McMaster's proposal, arguing that prison populations would increase, further straining the department's budget.
To keep inmate numbers from skyrocketing, McMaster has also proposed that some offenders be eligible for alternative sentences like road cleanup or work at public buildings. On Wednesday, Toal also mentioned alternative sentencing, saying it could save costs for the cash-strapped Corrections Department.
"A lot of voices have been heard in all branches of government, but this is really your leadership issue more than any other," Toal said. "You can bring together all of the stake holders ... It doesn't need to take years."
The chief justice also repeated her request for legislators to pay for more judges in the state's circuit and family courts.
"I could use them in every circuit in the state," Toal said, adding that South Carolina's trial judges are the most overloaded in the country.
National
NEW YORK - A man hacked a psychologist to death with a meat cleaver at her Upper East Side office and seriously injured another therapist who tried to help her, police said.
South Carolina's Supreme Court chief justice asked lawmakers on Wednesday to consider revamping the state's sentencing laws, suggesting that changes made to North Carolina's system have saved that state money and made citizens safer.
"Sentencing in the United States is a national problem," Chief Justice Jean Toal told a joint session of the House and Senate during her annual address. "The costs of incarceration are a major drain, not only on state resources but on local government."
Some of Toal's proposals, including keeping violent criminals behind bars longer, echoed ideas supported by state Attorney General Henry McMaster. In 2006, McMaster told lawmakers studying South Carolina's criminal justice system that abolishing parole for serious crimes would give victims and the public peace of mind in knowing precisely when criminals would be released from prison.
State prisons director Jon Ozmint has spoken out against McMaster's proposal, arguing that prison populations would increase, further straining the department's budget.
To keep inmate numbers from skyrocketing, McMaster has also proposed that some offenders be eligible for alternative sentences like road cleanup or work at public buildings. On Wednesday, Toal also mentioned alternative sentencing, saying it could save costs for the cash-strapped Corrections Department.
"A lot of voices have been heard in all branches of government, but this is really your leadership issue more than any other," Toal said. "You can bring together all of the stake holders ... It doesn't need to take years."
The chief justice also repeated her request for legislators to pay for more judges in the state's circuit and family courts.
"I could use them in every circuit in the state," Toal said, adding that South Carolina's trial judges are the most overloaded in the country.
National
NEW YORK - A man hacked a psychologist to death with a meat cleaver at her Upper East Side office and seriously injured another therapist who tried to help her, police said.
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