A conversation with Jasmine Heiss from the Vera Institute of Justice about a recent poll that uncovers American's souring sentiment toward incarceration policy.
It's no secret that America has an incarceration problem. And being "tough on crime" is something politicians proclaim in election years to prove that they care about safety. But a recent poll commissioned by the Vera Institute of Justice shows that the tide is turning when it comes to what people want for their communities. A majority of Americans—67 percent overall, including 61 percent in rural areas—agreed that building more jails and prisons does not reduce crime.
While politicians make remarks about the dangers of "inner-city crime," incarceration rates in major cities have fallen while rural communities have seen the most growth in incarceration rates and the jail population. Across the nation, when those polled were asked what they wanted their communities to invest in to improve quality of life, building prisons and jails (35 percent) lagged far behind other measures like providing jobs and job training (92 percent), investing in schools and youth programs (87 percent), and investing in mental-health treatment centers (87 percent).
In fact, nearly half (49 percent) of respondents said they believed "too many people are in jail for the wrong reasons," and 55 percent agreed that the country's criminal justice system discriminates against poor people. CityLab spoke with Jasmine Heiss, a director of outreach and public affairs strategist at Vera, about what this new data means and how it might lead to changes in policy around incarceration.