Are Alcohol Offenders Overcrowding Your Jails and Prisons?

 

Prison Stats For 

Alabama

No. of Prisoners*

29,412

Total Cost Per Day

$1,915,898

Looking for more stats? 

In This Section

Additional Resources

SCRAM CAM: A “Win-Win” Solution

The 2008 Pew Report on “Public Safety, Public Spending” forecasts America’s growing prison population, provides insights as to why these numbers are rising, and predicts how these will affect state and federal budgets, as well as public safety. In this report, Pew states that “an option that can lead to better public safety outcomes while saving money is the picture that goes alongside the dictionary definition of win-win.”

When it comes to dealing with alcohol offenders, SCRAM CAM is that “win-win” option.

SCRAM CAM continuously monitors offenders to ensure they’re not drinking, and reports any violations to the courts or supervising agencies to be addressed with swift and certain action. But SCRAM CAM goes beyond being simply a monitoring device that enforces compliance. When combined with treatment, SCRAM CAM has been proven to help dramatically reduce recidivism by making offenders address the root cause of their criminal behavior – alcohol addiction.

Since 2005, SCRAM CAM has:

  • Replaced incarceration with community supervision for 85,000 alcohol offenders − saving the corrections industry over $400 million
  • Significantly reduced recidivism (by 45%) when used on hard-core DWI offenders
  • On average, saved state and county budgets $55/day per offender vs. incarceration
  • Protected public safety at no cost to taxpayers
  • Created more tax payers vs. tax consumers because offenders pay their own cost of monitoring

To help alleviate the jail overcrowding problem, SCRAM CAM is being used by various members of the criminal justice ecosystem, including courts, counties, states, and sheriffs.

SCRAM CAM Helps Courts Protect Public Safety

Judges, attorneys, and probation officers are seeking solutions that will not only protect public safety, but also help alleviate overcrowded jails and prisons. By using SCRAM CAM, courts can allow the less dangerous alcohol offenders back into the community because they are being continuously monitored.

With regard to jail overcrowding, SCRAM CAM offers these benefits to courts:

  • Provides a cost-effective alternative to jail for those prisoners who are otherwise non-violent and able to be released back into the community under electronic supervision
  • Enforces the judge’s orders and makes offenders more accountable for their actions
  • Reduces recidivism by 45% when used on hard-core DWI offenders
  • Provides a continuous alcohol monitoring option for those offenders who would be ordered back to jail for technical violations
  • Protects public safety at no cost to taxpayers, since offenders pay their own monitoring fees
  • Allows offenders to hold jobs, support their families, and contribute positively to the community while maintaining extended sobriety
  • Has saved the corrections industry over $400 million since 2003 by monitoring over 85,000 offenders who may have otherwise taken up jail space

SCRAM CAM Helps Counties Free Up Jail Space

County executives need a way to maintain the balance between protecting their communities, while being fiscally responsible for maintaining adequate jail facilities amidst overcrowded conditions and rising operating and construction costs. They need a solution like SCRAM CAM that can help release some of their non-violent offenders into community supervision, while keeping the public safe.

With regard to jail overcrowding, SCRAM CAM offers these benefits to counties:

  • Provides a viable alternative to jail, so offenders can maintain jobs and contribute positively to the community
  • Protects public safety at no cost to county taxpayers
  • Reduces recidivism by 45% when used on hard-core DWI offenders
  • On average, saves county budgets $50/day vs. incarceration
  • Decreases jail staff turnover and overtime pay (byproducts of overcrowding)
  • Helps alleviate the associated costs of housing criminals who are otherwise non-violent and able to be released back into the community under electronic supervision
  • Provides a bridge to help offenders safely re-enter the community
  • Promotes rehabilitation when coupled with appropriate treatment
  • Reduces the pressure to build and operate new jail beds or rent non-county beds
  • Has saved the corrections industry over $400 million since 2003 by monitoring over 85,000 offenders who may have otherwise taken up jail space

SCRAM Helps States Do More With Less

Because it continuously monitors for alcohol consumption, SCRAM is one of the most effective tools that state Departments of Correction (DOCs) have to address their goals of better protecting the public while having to manage more offenders with less money. By forcing them to maintain extended sobriety, SCRAM is helping keep alcohol offenders out of state prison systems, while protecting the public from alcohol-related crime.

With regard to jail overcrowding, SCRAM offers these benefits to states:

  • Effectively and remotely monitors those offenders who are not a threat to the community when sober, and can be released under electronic supervision
  • Protects public safety at no cost to taxpayers, since offenders pay their own monitoring fees
  • On average, saves state budgets $50/day vs. incarceration
  • Decreases jail staff turnover and overtime pay (byproducts of overcrowding)
  • Provides a bridge to help offenders safely re-enter the community
  • Promotes rehabilitation when coupled with appropriate treatment
  • Allows the offenders to maintain family obligations, hold jobs, and contribute positively to the community while being monitored
  • Has saved the corrections industry over $400 million since 2003 by monitoring over 85,000 offenders who may have otherwise taken up jail space

SCRAM CAM Helps Sheriffs Protect Their Staff and Communities

As state and county budgets continue to tighten in our declining economy – while the number of offenders in county jails keeps rising – sheriffs and jail administrators are tasked with this challenge: How do you manage more offenders with increasingly limited space and money, while still protecting your community? Sheriffs and jail administrators want solutions that help them better manage their inmate populations, while also helping ensure the safety of both staff and other inmates.

With regard to jail overcrowding, SCRAM CAM offers these benefits to sheriffs:

  • Effectively and remotely monitors those offenders who are not a threat to the community and can be released under electronic supervision
  • Dramatically reduces the daily cost of supervising offenders (approx. $50 for jail vs. $12 for SCRAM CAM)
  • Decreases jail staff turnover and overtime pay (byproducts of overcrowding)
  • Provides a bridge to help offenders re-enter the community while protecting the public
  • Helps offenders get sober, be accountable for their actions, and get the help they need to break the “revolving door” pattern
  • Protects public safety at no cost to taxpayers
  • Reduces recidivism by 45% when used on hard-core DWI offenders