UConn Poll Takes Public Pulse On Prisons

By Andrew Gorosko

A public opinion poll on state prison crowding has found that a majority of those queried support relaxing mandatory minimum sentences, as well as providing alternatives to incarceration for the mentally ill and for drug offenders.

The poll further found that a majority of those questioned believe that the state should not spend more money on sending prisoners out-of-state or to construct new state prisons to relieve overcrowding.

The recent UConn Poll was based on a sample of 601 state residents. The sampling error is plus/minus four percent.

Newtown is the home of Garner Correctional Institution, a state high-security prison on Nunnawauk Road. Garner is becoming the state’s prime prison for inmates with serious mental health problems.

According to the polling results, 51 percent of the respondents oppose increased spending to send inmates to out-of-state prisons to relieve state prison overcrowding, while 45 percent of respondents support such spending.

The poll found that 53 percent of respondents oppose constructing more prisons in Connecticut, while 43 percent support doing so.

Also, 60 percent of respondents oppose constructing prisons in their hometowns, while 38 percent would support it.

According to the poll, residents strongly support alternatives to imprisonment for the mentally ill, for substance abusers, and for parolees as a way to deal with the overcrowding issue.

Of those polled, 30 percent of respondents consider prison overcrowding a “very serious” issue.

As alternatives to imprisonment, 89 percent of those responding favor sending nonviolent mentally ill offenders to mental health facilities instead of prison to reduce prison overcrowding, according to the poll.

In the poll, 84 percent support replacing prison sentences with mandatory drug treatment and probation for people convicted of nonviolent illegal drug use.

Of those polled, 61 percent favor relaxing mandatory minimum sentences for first-time offenders to reduce prison overcrowding, while 33 percent oppose it.

In the query, 51 percent of the respondents oppose giving judges more flexibility in imposing reduced sentences to cut prison overcrowding; 45 percent support doing so.

Of those polled, 41 percent listed prisoner rehabilitation as the prime goal of imprisonment; 24 percent list punishment as the prime goal; 22 percent see incarceration primarily as protection for society, while 9 percent say that imprisonment should primarily be a deterrent to others.

Among those queried, 52 percent of respondents say that prisoners have too many rights.

In the poll, respondents were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with a statement. The statement is: “In most cases, efforts to rehabilitate nonviolent prisoners are a waste of time and money.” In response, 69 percent disagreed and 27 percent agreed.