MURRAY — When an independent citizens group finds problems with a government agency that echo the same gripes of the agency itself, "people need to think," a state corrections official says.

Michael Chabries, deputy director of the state Department of Corrections addressed the Salt Lake League of Women Voters Sunday afternoon at the Old Farm Community Center.

He talked about about the women's league report on incarceration and rehabilitation in Utah.

The report culminated two years of research and interviews with prisoners, officers and officials by members of the Salt Lake chapter of the league, said Bonnie Rock, co-chairwoman of the study.

"This is clearly one of the most informative, well-written, most objective (studies) I've ever seen in government," Chabries said.

According to the report, Utah's incarceration rate is 245 per 100,000 people — lower than the national average but higher than many other industrialized countries.

The report noted only a small number of offenders are housed in community-based facilities, such as group homes or rehabilitation centers.

Most offenders, including those convicted of non-violent crimes, serve time in prisons.

The authors of the report suggested finding less expensive ways to rehabilitate these offenders and parolees who return to prison for technical violations of their parole.

Chabries agreed.

"I'm not too sure 'getting tough on crime' means lock them up and throw away the key," he said.

Chabries said these alternatives, possibly community-based rehabilitation needs, should be studied, especially for drug crimes and sex offenses.

Chabries answered many questions about education and job training.

The report also said that 70 percent of inmates are illiterate.

"For people who don't come out with job skills, return rates are 50 to 60 percent," Chabries said.

However, studies have shown return rates drop to about 20 percent when inmates are educated.

Some inmates don't know how to balance checkbooks or get along with co-workers, the report said.

Inmates can receive general education degrees (GED), college degrees and apprenticeships to learn a skilled labor.

"We ought to devote resources now to save money in the future," Chabries said.

However, these programs depend on legislative funding, Chabries said.

Corrections officials submitted their budget request to the governor's office and should know within two weeks what the office will approve.

Chabries said he hopes for funding to recruit and retain prison officers, who, according to the study, earn 69.1 percent of their counterparts in cities and county jails.

One idea Chabries hopes will come to fruition is a child-care center for employees, which could attract more females to work in prisons and may help retain employees.

Chabries said employee retention is one of the biggest human-resource problems for the department.

"It is important for us to take care of our employees . . . Inmates will reap rewards from that," Chabries said.

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Co-president of the local chapter of the league, Pat Nielsen, said the public can expect the league to make an appearance at the January session of the state Legislature.

She said league members will look at the report and decide which issues they will take "a position of support for."

Chabries said he hopes the league and other community organizations will sit in at meetings with corrections officials to make suggestions and think up solutions to current problems in the system.


E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com

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