Columbus Dispatch. September 30, 2022.
Editorial: Judges play crucial role in justice system; voters should pay attention
As of today, there are 40 days remaining before the Nov. 8 general election and most of the attention has been and will continue to be on the four U.S. House of Representative seats. Depending on where you live in the Golden Triangle, you will vote in the District 1 race (incumbent Republican Trent Kelly vs. Democrat Dianne Blac) or for the District 3 race (incumbent Republican Michael Guest vs. Democrat Shuwaski Young).
Who we send to represent us in Congress matters, yet there are other offices on the ballot that are also worthy of careful deliberation.
In Lowndes County, former YMCA director Andy Boyd and businessman David Chism will be on the ballot to fill the unexpired term of Lynn Wright for the Mississippi District 37 House seat. Wright passed away in June. Because it is a special election, it is a non-partisan race.
Oktibbeha County’s ballot will include a new judge position — county judge — which will primarily handle youth cases. The candidates for the judgeship are Bruce Brown, Marty Haug and Lee Ann Turner.
Meanwhile, two of the three circuit judge races are contested and we will have at least one new District 16 circuit court judge following the retirement of Place 3 judge Lee Coleman. There are four candidates on the ballot – Trina Brooks, Mark Cliett, Michelle Easterling and Bennie Jones Jr.
Lee Howard V faces no opponent in Place 2. In Place 1, incumbent Jim Kitchens faces challenger Chuck Easley.
Aside from jury duty, most citizens have little exposure to the job these judges do. Circuit court judges preside over the trials of felony cases, serious offenses that often involve violent crimes. The stakes in these cases are naturally high and a judge’s role can influence the verdict in myriad ways: It is the judge who determines what evidence the jury hears, what instructions juries are given as they begin deliberating the verdict. Some judges allow jurors to take notes during testimony. Others do not.
Because the average citizen has little familiarity with circuit courts, it may be difficult to determine what you should look for in a candidate.
Jim Davidson, who served as a chancery court judge for 12 years, said it’s pretty simple.
“Show up, do your work, get it right,” he said.
Davidson noted that judge positions are determined through non-partisan elections. Presumably, that is. In recent years, the line between being an independent arbiter and following a partisan path.
As voters consider the candidates, it’s worth watching out for partisan rhetoric in their public appearances or campaign literature. An independent judiciary is vital to the health of our society.
Usually, in these campaigns, you hear a lot about being “tough on crime,” something that appeals to the fears and frustrations caused by serious crimes in our communities.
When you consider that Mississippi has the highest incarceration rate not only among U.S. states but in the world, there can be little doubt about how tough our judicial system is.
That is why we were encouraged that the tone of the rhetoric in these races have shifted. In a candidates forum Tuesday in Starkville, candidates talked about ways to reduce incarceration without jeopardizing public safety through drug courts and diversion programs, house arrest using ankle bracelets and leniency in sentencing for non-violent crime.
In the remaining days before the election, we encourage voters to familiarize themselves with the candidates in these important races. To help, The Dispatch will publish a voter guide in early November.
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Greenwood Commonwealth. October 1, 2022.
Editorial: Could Drones Replace Guards?
Stories from Mississippi prisons are grim, with evidence indicating that in the worst cases, shorthanded staffs have delegated inmate management to gangs. No chance of any problems arising from that cost-cutting idea, right?
Mississippi’s travails come to mind in light of a report on the Politico website whose second headline reads, “Prison staffing has grown so dire that governors in Florida and West Virginia have declared states of emergency in recent weeks.”
Even more interesting is the story’s main headline: “Why Nevada wants to use drones inside prisons.”
According to Politico, all 50 states for years have struggled to find enough guards to oversee the nation’s 1.2 million inmates. “And in recent months the vacancy rates have skyrocketed as officers — frustrated by low pay, violent conditions, long hours, isolated work locations and routine exposure to COVID-19 — quit in droves,” it added.
Thus Nevada is ready to let technology take over. The state is going to deploy drones in prisons to keep an eye on inmates — literally. It also will make inmates wear surveillance bracelets even though they’re already behind bars.
Nevada actually got the drone idea from a police department in Arizona that’s using the program on a smaller scale. Nevada corrections officials envision a prison security system with a command center where one person can monitor video feeds and decibel levels inside each prison housing unit, along with outdoor areas of the property.
When a situation escalates to an emergency, the monitor can deploy prison guards to that area. As for the bracelets, they would be useful when an inmate escapes, as would the drones, which could provide an immediate airborne view of the area.
There are plenty of unanswered questions about this plan — starting with how much it will cost. One lawmaker observed that state prison officials appear to be building a house without knowing what it’s going to look like.
Also, for all of the world’s technological advances — from simple stuff like the TV remote to extremely complicated equipment — things do go wrong sometimes. The real test of Nevada’s plan will be what happens at the prison when the equipment malfunctions. The corrections industry also will learn whether inmates really can be managed with limited human intervention.
Politico reports that other states are filling prison jobs the old-fashioned way — with higher salaries. In 2021, Nebraska raised the average salary of prison officers to $58,200 — a 40% jump from the prior rate of $41,600.
A year later, Nebraska’s number of vacant positions has declined significantly. Now the state’s biggest prison staffing problem is attracting qualified medical caregivers.
Looking 20 years ahead, it will not be a surprise if Nevada’s drone approach works and is copied elsewhere. Even if its plans require a lot of adjustments, there is no getting around the fact that being a prison guard is dangerous work. States will have to pay these employees a premium — or replace them with machines.
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