Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Huckleberries Online

Lewiston Trib: Batt Was Right About Prison Crowding

For the rest of the story, click here

Idaho should have listened to Phil Batt. When he was governor in the late '90s, Batt appointed himself "a committee of one" to look into prison overcrowding. He talked to professionals at every level of the justice system. They said over and over that mandatory minimum sentences are overloading Idaho's prisons. When Batt relayed this to legislators, they responded immediately -- with more mandatory sentences. Now Idaho faces a 34 percent increase in its prison population over the next five years -- Tom Henderson, Lewiston Tribune.

Question: Should Idaho and Washington steer away from mandatory sentences for lesser crimes?



Huckleberries Online

D.F. Oliveria started Huckleberries Online on Feb. 16, 2004. Oliveria's Sunday print Huckleberries is a past winner of the national Herb Caen Memorial Column contest.