Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Kentucky News Roundup

Five myths about Americans in prison - Lexington Herald-Leader and others

No country on Earth imprisons more people per capita than the United States. But for America, mass incarceration has proved a losing proposition. The Supreme Court recently found California’s overcrowded prisons unconstitutional, and state legislators want to cut the vast amounts of public money spent on prison warehousing.

Why are so many Americans in prison, and which ones can be safely released? Let’s address some common misunderstandings about our incarceration problem.

State can't fight drug abuse without more treatment - Lexington Herald-Leader

I have had the privilege of working as an alcohol- and drug-addiction counselor for more than 11 years. I moved from Ohio to Kentucky three months ago and plan on attending the University of Kentucky to work on a master's degree.

I am shocked and appalled at Kentucky's response to the drug and alcohol epidemic that is sweeping parts of Kentucky away. I also have learned that Kentucky contributes $6.3 million a year to alcoholism and addiction treatment. A mid-level drug dealer averages a half million a year in profits

Time to end Kentucky's death penalty - Lexington Herald-Leader

The guilty plea and sentencing to life without parole of former state representative Steve Nunn for the murder of Amanda Ross came just one week after release of a report from the Death Penalty Information Center on the 35th anniversary of U. S. Supreme Court rulings allowing restoration of capital punishment.

Out and About: State penitentiary tour an eye-opening ordeal - Bowling Green Daily News

The address on the front of the building simply reads 266 Water St. There are lots of Water Streets in America and even a few others in Kentucky, but this one is not exactly a place you want to call home.

At 266 Water St. in Eddyville sits the Kentucky State Penitentiary, where about 900 men of all ages reside.

I had the opportunity recently to visit the 125-year-old facility only as a tourist, and was it ever an eye-opener.