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Massachusetts Supreme Court is considering a controversial program that would charge inmates for their stay in prison. The’Debt to Society’ program was sparked by Bristol County Sheriff, Thomas Hodgson. “It’s time the inmates start to pay their way,” said Hodgson. “They’re the people who cost the most, and contribute the least.”

Part of the proposed plan would be to charge inmates $5.00 for their ‘cost of care’, $3.00 for their ‘co-pay to medical unit’, $5.00 for a haircut, and $12.50 for GED testing. Some say charging inmates for their GED is one thing, but charging them for food is another — leaving many to ask how would inmates looking to turn over a new leaf redeem themselves, if they have to pay for school? “If they have money to buy candy, cookies and upgraded sneakers, they have money to pay their basics first,” said Hodgson. “Simple because they commit crimes against the law abiding citizens, inmates are not recession-free.”

Back in 2002, Sheriff Hodgson imposed a $5.00 a day fee on inmates, for their stay in jail. After two-years of charging inmates their five-bucks, almost $750,000 was collected. In 2004, a Supreme Court judge shut down the ‘pay-to-stay’ program, after several of the inmates sued Hodgson. The moneys collected from the inmates is reported to be sitting in escrow, as the lawsuits continue.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 4th, 2009 at 10:01 and is filed under Major Media News, Politics . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.