Letter to the Editor—Washington Post

Dear Editor:

Re: Virginia’s corrections system is a model for other states by Brian J. Moran, June 15

The recent article by Virginia’s secretary of public safety and homeland security, Brian Moran, could give readers the impression that Virginia’s correction system has become a utopia. However, Mr. Moran and Director Harold W. Clarke have resisted transparency, and this became evident when they opposed common sense legislation proposed in HB 795 that never got out of the Militia, Police, and Public Safety subcommittee.

This legislation would have provided the public with the information needed to evaluate Virginia’s corrections system instead of having to rely upon self-serving reports like the one appearing in the Washington Post. Taxpayers need to know--and HB 795 would have made the information available—the following, which is not now available:

1. The total prison population;
2. The number of inmates who have been placed in isolated confinement, by age, sex, gender identity, and ethnicity;
3. The total number of placements in isolated confinement;
4. The average length of stay and median length of stay in isolated confinement;
5. The number of pregnant women in isolated confinement;
6. The number of inmates with mental illness in isolated confinement;
7. The average and median length of stay for mentally ill inmates in isolated confinement;
8. The number of inmates age 21 or younger in isolated confinement and their average length of stay;
9. The number of inmates age 55 or older in isolated confinement and their average length of stay.

Regards,

John Horejsi, Coordinator
Social Action Linking Together (SALT)
9610 Counsellor Dr. N.W.
Vienna, VA 22181-3248
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703 255-7074