A Growing Mission Field

6,000 INMATES OVER CAPACITY BY 2017?

N.C. prison crunch predicted

State may face tough choice: Cut sentences or expand the system

DAN KANE
(Raleigh) News & Observer

RALEIGH --Unless state lawmakers agree to trim sentences, they will face spending tens of millions of dollars to expand North Carolina's prison system, population projections show.

Evenwith two expansion projects approved last year, the system's capacity will be exceeded this year. By 2017, the state's prisons will not have a place for more than 6,000 inmates, or 13 percent of the projected prison population.

"If we don't get around 800 or so (additional) beds authorized a year, we'll run out of space if the projections are accurate -- and they have been in the past," said Boyd Bennett, state prisons director.

Overcrowded prisons have a domino effect: Prisoners awaiting transfers from county jails may be held there until space opens up at a state prison.

The N.C. Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission produces the projections every year. So far, lawmakers largely have dealt with them by spending on bricks and mortar. A booming state population -- and more criminal penalties added to the books -- have added to the space crunch.

Susan Katzenelson, the commission's executive director, said the latest projections show prison population growth has slowed slightly, but not enough to save the state from a hefty construction bill.

Bennett said the department's latest 10-year capital plan includes several expansions plus a new 1,000-bed medium-custody prison.

The commission has suggested tweaking sentencing laws to shorten some prison terms, but lawmakers have balked at that.

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A Greater Task

On Sunday Pastor Todd Hahn (Next Level Church) shared that men have a deep desire to "be a part of something greater than themselves." And what could be better than being a part of God's great "rescue mission."

This rescue mission involves REACHING people, RECONCILING them to God through Christ, and RENEWING the image of God in them.

This is exactly the mission of The Saints Prison Ministry and the reason why the men and women who get involved in this work find it to be so rewarding.

February Report

Our first Carolina Saints information meeting took place on Saturday, January 26th at the Matthews Campus of Next Level Church. Though many who wished to attend were unable to make it, those who were there made it a fruitful meeting.

Those in attendance showed enthusiasm for the ministry and have already started to spread the word about The Saints. We will be planning another gather in late February and target games about once a month beginning in April.

In the coming weeks we will be getting in touch with the current softball players for the church and see who may be interested in taking their game to the next level of outreach.