Jails are filled with non-violent offenders

I am glad to read that we voted down the proposed jail tax. I was upset to see our elected officials trying to waste more of our money.

We do not need more jail space, we need better legislation. Currently our jails are filled to over-capacity with non-violent offenders, mostly people convicted of driving with a suspended license. I agree that there should be a price to pay if one chooses to break the law. But is jail time really the answer for driving? (Not driving dangerously, just driving.) These people should be given unending hours of community restitution, not free room and board. Our laws need to be changed.

I recently met a man who was in jail for 100 days for driving to and from work with a suspended license. It amazes me that our judicial system believes that a person who has not paid his or her fines should be relieved of the only way they have to earn the money to pay those fines. I mean, we all know the public transportation system around here is a joke. There is even an option for people convicted of driving with a suspended license that allows them the ability to go to and from work. This “option” should be mandatory. Make people pay their debt for breaking the law – don’t keep putting them in time-out.

Everett