I just posted this same statement on the rants thread, when I realized that it might make for a good thread on it's own. I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on this - as I believe it would be a slap in our faces (soceity) and an even further disrespect to the memory of Caylee.
:furious::furious::furious:
Ok, my rotd is that I went to FSU for 2 years and paid alot of $$$ to be able to do that! Does everybody realize that, if KC is found guilty and sentenced to stay in prison for however long, she can receive a college degree while in prison? While I can appreciate the fact that this helps our soceity when prisoners are released, I think it's unfair that the costs of this program weighs on us taxpayers! Just think about it...KC lies about going to Valencia, and ends up going to jail, only for us tax payers to end up paying for her to get a degree with a very well established university! Heck, she could become a lawyer in jail, win an appeal based on some mitigating indiscretions from her original lawyer (which btw I do believe will happen - the appeal that is), and all the while "we" the taxpayers will have to foot the bill! Just a rant but worthwhile looking into. There's tons of universities that do this, but it's not entirely nationwide yet. If KC isn't found guilty of murder, and only gets a 20-30 year sentence, she could get her masters, heck, doctorate for all we know, and pass everything with flying colors. She'd have tons of free time in jail to be able to study. Wouldn't it be crazy if she ended up being a criminal defense lawyer and became wealthy once released? Oooooooh - burns me up! :furious::furious::furious:
Here's the link for FSU's program:
http://www.fsu.com/pages/2008/12/09/education_in_prison.html
Here's the actual page from fsu.com:
TOM BLOMBERG
Education in prison reduces crime: Florida State to lead national push
BY LIBBY FAIRHURST
The Florida State University College of Criminology and Criminal Justice will help to lead the newly formed "Alliance for the Advancement of Education in Juvenile Justice and Adult Corrections," a national coalition of correctional and educational professionals promoting proven education programs for incarcerated juvenile and adult offenders.
"Despite the current recession and the threat of cuts or worse to many public programs, our nation literally cannot afford to see the Alliance mission fail," said Florida State Professor Tom Blomberg, dean of the college.
"Today, it is estimated that crime costs U.S. taxpayers more than a trillion dollars a year, and our use of incarceration to combat crime has never been higher, with more than one in every 100 Americans behind bars, yet recidivism (repeat offending) now occurs at the alarming rate of 70 percent or more," he said. "Clearly, we need consistent, common-sense correctional policies driven and informed by scholarly research and empirical data, and among those practices proven to work, education during incarceration is one of the best."
Blomberg called education achievement the cornerstone of success not only for the general population but among the correctional population as well.
"Research data show that correctional education and associated academic achievement provide a positive turning point for incarcerated offenders in their post-release lives," he said. "They are more likely to gain employment and, therefore, less likely to re-offend. As a result, we save both tangible taxpayer dollars and the numerous intangible pain and suffering costs associated with criminal victimization."
As leaders of the Alliance, criminologists at Florida State will guide and coordinate the group's efforts in cooperation with the Correctional Education Association
www.ceanational.org and other national and state organizations. Together the participants will provide leadership and research and develop legislative advocacy. In addition, Florida State researchers will collect data from all 50 states to establish a National Data Clearinghouse for juvenile justice and adult correctional education.
The hoped-for result: sound public policy that truly takes a bite out of crime by reducing recidivism and the nation's expensive and ineffective reliance upon incarceration.
For more information on Florida State University's distinguished College of Criminology and Criminal Justice, visit the Web site at
www.criminology.fsu.edu. To learn more about the Center for Criminology and Public Policy Research, a branch of the college, go to
www.criminologycenter.fsu.edu.
