Staffing Shortages Limit Basic Prison Function

 The Covid-19 pandemic, together with other factors, has made America's job market tough. Companies are having difficulty finding employees who will stay in the job, so wages and benefits are rising, and those costs are being passed onto consumers. Government agencies and departments are also feeling the pinch of staffing issues, including the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC). 

In addition to the "normal" difficulties in hiring, the Department also contends with a new generation of potential employees who will not part with their electronic devices for an entire day of work. New hires also face immediate mandating of (a LOT of) overtime work, starting pay equal to what they can now make at Walmart or McDonalds, and a work culture rife with corruption, apathy, and constant negativity. I feel sorry for the public relations person who must spin such conditions to make the job sound appealing. 

Because the MDOC continues to struggle with finding and keeping new employees, every prison, and even state-wide administrative jobs, are severely understaffed. Administrative staff, both on a prison level and those who work in the Department headquarters, are working overtime, just to cover basic safety functions in prison. Morale among staff suffers, and prisoners become increasingly frustrated when basic prison functions don't operate due to staffing shortages. 

For months now, the first shift at Handlon Correction Facility has been too understaffed to open yard for prisoners. "Big yard," as it is commonly referred to, is where prisoners can run, lift weights, play basketball, and get other exercise in. The small yards in front of the housing units are often too cramped for prisoners to get much exercise. Big yard continues to only be opened on second shift, meaning prisoners with afternoon and evening classes and other obligations cannot get their recreation time in. The gym has also been closed for months due to "short staffing issues." 

Recently, several new ride-ins (prisoners transferred from other prisons) waited several days to receive their personal property. This means they only had the clothes on their backs to sleep in and wear all day, and no access to hygiene items necessary for taking a shower or even brushing their teeth, for three days. The reason they were given for the delay is the prison is too "short staffed" to hand out property. One of the prisoners transferred from a prison literally across the street from Handlon. 

Michigan's Governor and the State Legislature have options, literally in their hands, to reduce the state's prison population immediately, allowing several prisons to close. But they continue to punt this problem down the road. Reducing the state's prison population will not only save the state millions of dollars per year, but it would help to solve the ongoing staffing shortage. With fewer people in prison, fewer corrections officers and other staff are needed. 

Good time legislation, or some other population reducing mechanism, can ensure that only those prisoners who demonstrate rehabilitation through measurable metrics are released. This should ease the fears of those who worry that releasing prisoners early will lead to an increase in crime rates. When prisoners have to earn reductions in the sentences, it is more likely they will continue demonstrating good behavior after leaving prison. 

The short staffing problem is not going to go away soon because the Department cannot hire enough staff to even replace those quitting and retiring. In fact, the problem appears to only be getting worse. It's time for the legislature to take decisive action to solve this problem. For the safety of Michigan's residents, the state can no longer afford to push this security and safety problem down the road. 

Please contact your state legislators (Representatives and Senators) and urge them to take immediate action on reducing Michigan's prison population. Urge them to vote yes on bringing back Good Time to Michigan.

Grand Rapids Man Shot and Killed by Police Office in Routine Traffic Stop

 Another tragedy involving an officer shooting and killing an unarmed black man has made national news--only this incident occurred in our backyard. About a week and a half ago, during a routine traffic stop, Patrick Lyoya attempted to walk away from the scene when asked for his driver's license. After an ensuing struggle, the responding officer shot Patrick in the back of the head, killing him. 

It is unclear why Patrick attempted to leave or why he refused to comply with the officer's directions. I imagine that information will come out in the investigation. But as video evidence has shown, Patrick was not a danger to the officer or to any bystander, when the officer escalated the situation, eventually shooting Patrick. 

Most people would agree that when stopped by police, the best response is to comply with instructions and not resist. But most people would also likely contend that lethal force is extremely excessive in a situation that does not involve a weapon or immediate danger to anyone. Patrick may have been wrong in how he responded to the officer, but that gave no cause for lethal force. 

Though I am not African American, I have to imagine that the prevalence of these officer involved deaths of black men for seemingly small infractions has got to have a traumatic effect on one's psyche. It's traumatic for entire communities of people. It's little wonder why so many African Americans do not trust law enforcement. 

In prison, the response to George Floyd's death was anger and frustration, especially among the African American population. The response to Patrick's death has been largely sad resignation. It's a double tragedy that these incidents have become so commonplace that entire communities of people are no longer shocked or surprised by such absurdity. 

Grand Rapids' new police chief has his hands full, and he hasn't even been on the job a month yet. He claims to be reform-minded, and I hope he is for the sake of the community. "Something has to change" has become such a trite response that unless something actually changes, nobody can believe it ever will.

When lethal force is used by those in power, excessive for the problem at hand, it illustrates a double standard in our society. When African Americans and other minorities, especially, but the poor, prisoners, and former prisoners of all colors also, are accused of committing even minor infractions, the consequences are often severe. When people in power commit much more severe crimes, they are often protected from public scrutiny and severe consequences. This double standard further erodes the public's trust in law enforcement and the courts.

New officer training might limit the number of tragic cases like those that led to Patrick Lyoya's death, but only a heart-change in society will lead to real change. We, police officers and citizens alike, must start treating people with inherent dignity first, not as threats to be neutralized. 

Michigan Prisons Relax Mask Mandate

 In what has generated a giant sigh of relief among both prisoners and staff, the Michigan Department of Corrections has this past week relaxed its mask mandate. Prisoners and staff are still urged to wear their masks at all times, but they are no longer required to. 

The new rules released by Lansing have continued the mask mandate for prisoners and their visitors in the visiting rooms, and for prisoners during medical appointments. Additionally, prisoners are required to wear their masks during transportation when transfered to other prisons or to outside medical appointments. 

After two years of being required to wear masks, at least half of which included while outdoors, prisoners are relieved to finally free their faces of their cloth fetters. The day of our faces' release, up and down the hallways in the housing units prisoners were heard joking, "Oh! That's what you look like!" and "What a nice smile! I didn't know you smiled!" 

After two years of Covid restrictions, and incessant mask-wearing, we could use a little something to smile about. At least now we can see the delight (and relief) on each other's faces.

Has America Lost its Capacity for Forgiveness?

 In the last five to ten years, America has developed a ruthless insensitivity to the human condition--people making bad choices sometimes. To be fair, America has had this insensitivity for a lot longer, but it's manifested itself in some vicious ways in recent years. 

Of course, America's obsession with handing out longer and longer sentences for crimes is an easy example to cite. Crimes that used to result in two or three years in prison now earn sometimes decades-long sentences. Mandatory minimums, three-strikes rules, and America's growing dependency on the prison industrial complex have all contributed to these growing sentence lengths. 

For all of America's reputation as "the land of opportunity" and the "land of second chances," in practice the American people would rather create a permanently ostracized class of people than provide second chances. Yes, there's been a movement lately to promote second chances for returning citizens, but this movement has grown side-by-side with a counter movement--the cancel culture. 

During the recent Golden Globes, which I'm surprised anyone watches anymore, Will Smith, arguably one of the best actors of his generation, finally received his long-overdue Golden Globe award. But before he could receive his award, he did something stupid. In response to presenter Chris Rock's "joke" making fun of Jada Smith's medical condition, Will walked up on the stage and slapped Chris. 

A lot of people initially felt compassion for Will because he defended his wife's honor, even if they disagreed with his methods. (This is my position, incidentally.) However, the tide seems to have turned against Smith. Now, he is at great risk of being cancelled by a culture that has lost its capacity for forgiveness. 

If Smith is ostracized by the film industry, he will join a long list of people who have acted badly, and been quickly relegated to a second-class status by society. Sure, it's not the same as joining a permanently ostracized "criminal class" because of committing a crime (though technically his was a crime). Still, it illustrates America's lack of capacity for forgiveness. 

What ever happened to second chances? What ever happened to giving someone a chance to make things right? What ever happened to forgiveness? Must everyone in America be defined by their worst (or most public) offenses? Yes, we need to hold people accountable, and Smith should be held accountable for his actions. But if America really is a land of second chances, why don't we actually give people a chance to make things right? 

Whether it's for Smith or the millions of Americans who are now permanently labeled as criminals, America needs to find its compassion again. We need to find a balance between accountability and forgiveness. When people seek to make right their wrongs, we ought to let them, and even help them! And then, we ought to forgive them and invite them back into fellowship with the rest of society, not push them to the outer edges where we can conveniently forget about them. 

Let's stop treating people like dirty little secrets, instead remembering that we all have the capacity to do wrong. Let's find our capacity to forgive again and begin to be a nation that truly offers second chances. Otherwise, let's stop claiming to be what we aren't.