CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM - Louisiana has the highest incarceration rate in the nation. Statistically, 5 out of every ten-thousand Louisiana residents are behind bars. According to Louisiana’s Department of Corrections, there are more than 36,000 people serving time for felonies, and State facilities can only house 19,000 inmates. The remaining 17,000 plus inmates are housed at parish and private facilities. And it’s not cheap either, incarceration costs taxpayers $600 million dollars every year. With a state budget deficit to deal with, it means Louisiana needs to find a way to lower that cost and that means major criminal justice reform. Governor John Bel Edwards has challenged the Justice Reinvestment Task Force to come up with a solutions. The task force met last week in Baton Rouge.
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