STEVE KING: The victims of prison reform

OPINION:

Let’s begin with a deeply troubling truth: You are being enlisted as sacrificial lambs in prison reform legislation currently being considered by Congress. This legislation comes in response to President Obama’s quest to release as many convicted criminals as he can from federal prison due to concerns about the costs of lengthy prison sentences. In the rush to right supposed wrongs of our justice system, some of you will be asked to pay the price and become victims of crimes that otherwise could not be committed.

There has been a push to soon pass companion bills through both the Senate and the House in the name of prison reform, but the reality is this reform would mostly assist illegal immigrants escape deportation and actually re-enter the American job market. Essentially, this legislation would reduce minimum sentences for criminals already convicted of certain federal crimes, regardless of immigration status.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons reported last fall that in 2015 alone, 77 percent of individuals convicted of federal drug possession charges and more than 25 percent of individuals convicted of federal drug trafficking charges were criminal aliens. Under the proposed legislation, most of these individuals would be released back onto the streets. It baffles me how nowhere in these discussions about emptying our prisons will you hear the stories of the victims, nor will you hear anything about the potential cost of increased crime rates once these prisoners are released.

This is crucial because the data on criminals released back on the streets is foreboding. A Bureau of Justice Statistics study followed 404,638 prisoners released from prisons in 30 states from 2005 through 2010. They found that two-thirds of those released in 2005 were rearrested within three years and three-quarters were rearrested by 2010. That’s more than 303,000 individuals arrested once again for crimes that could have been prevented, and we can only expect that number to drastically escalate if this detrimental legislation is passed.

In Columbus Ohio, Wendell Callahan benefited twice from reductions in his sentence for dealing crack due to prior reform efforts. He had been released as a part of retroactive reductions by the U.S. Sentencing Commission and was determined to not present a danger to the public. But then he was arrested on Jan. 13 and charged with murdering his ex-girlfriend and two of her children.

Another preventable tragedy is that of Kate Steinle. She was shot and killed in San Francisco, a sanctuary city, as she enjoyed a summer day with her family. The illegal immigrant arrested for her murder had been deported five times and convicted of seven felonies. If the government had been more concerned with the enforcement of our laws and justice for victims, as opposed to amnesty and sanctuary for criminals, Kate Steinle would be alive, living and loving life.

Proponents of early release of criminals point to the cost of incarceration. They say our prisons are overcrowded and this costs the taxpayers too much. In 2015, the Bureau of Prisons said the cost per year of a federal inmate was $30, 619.85. There are some 196,348 prisoners in federal prison. That totals about $6 billion a year. While not a small sum, it pales in comparison to the cost of criminal activity and the loss of any innocent life. A 1996 National Institute of Justice report estimated that crime costs $450 billion annually. Studies have estimated murder costs $4.4 million per crime. A rape is estimated to cost $369,739 and a robbery is $219,286.

Given how much more expensive crime is than incarceration, it defies reason that our focus is on releasing criminals back on the streets. If we want to save lives and money, we must uphold our justice system and incarcerate criminals. Where the disconnect lies is that while government bears the cost of incarceration, it is the victims who foot the bill for crimes. While victims’ costs and pain are hidden from the calculations made in Washington, D.C., they are the ones covering medical bills, property damage, lost wages and broken hearts. We should strive to deliver justice to the guilty and protect the innocent by taking victims into account when considering prison reform. The current path of releasing the guilty to terrorize the innocent would be the dissolution of our criminal justice system.

• Steve King is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa.