With coronavirus spreading a concern in prisons across the country, lawmakers in Virginia are considering a plan that would allow for early release of geriatric prisoners.
A Senate panel has approved a bill that would allow for early release of prisoners who are geriatric, terminally ill or permanently disabled.
Senator John Bell is a Democrat from Loudoun County, and he says the vast majority of inmates eligible under the legislation are totally bedridden. “So these are folks who can’t move much. They have a terminal diagnosis, 12 months or less is the life expectancy," Bell explained Tuesday. "This bill would allow the Parole Board to review additional cases and consider those offenders who do not pose a threat, and whose health care costs due to their condition pose a significant financial burden to the Commonwealth.”
He estimates releasing these inmates would save taxpayers $58 million a year.
Republican Senator Ryan McDougle of Hanover County says the proposal is dangerous. “There’s somebody who could be permanently disabled but still able to physically go out and harm members of the community," McDougle argued. "This bill would allow rapists and child molesters to be released early when they could still be a danger to the community and our children.”
A similar bill was passed by the Senate earlier this year, but it didn’t make it out of a House Committee.
A Senate committee also advanced a bill that would allow the state Attorney General's office to conduct "pattern and practice" investigations of law enforcement agencies. It also approved an omnibus measure that would institute a number of policing reforms.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
