Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
The Florida Sheriffs Research Institute released a report Wednesday detailing the history and use of Florida’s Prisoner Release Reoffender Law.
PRR requires judges to hand down maximum sentences for certain felony convictions if the offender commits the crime less than three years after being released from prison. The statute applies to a wide array of crimes, ranging from burglary to air piracy.
According to the new report, “The Prisoner Release Reoffender: Sentencing Repeat Offenders of Violent and Serious Crime in Florida,” about a quarter of former prisoners in Florida commit a crime that lands them back behind bars within three years of being released and 35% do so within five years.
FSRI says the state’s recidivism rate is likely higher if convictions that don’t result in a prison sentence are included.
“It’s important to remember that inmates sentenced to PRR are not first-time, low-level offenders, and Florida is not alone in its efforts to address habitual offenders who repeatedly commit violent and serious crimes. The Prisoner Release Reoffender law is working, and it helps to protect everyone in the Sunshine State,” said Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, who chairs the Florida Sheriff’s Association Legislative Committee.
The Florida Legislature passed PRR into law in 1997 and officials predicted it would lead to another 14,000 convicts in state prisons by 2007. However, the FSRI report states that, as of September 2020, there were just 7,459 inmates serving a PRR sentence in state prisons. Meanwhile, the state’s violent crime rate has dropped precipitously over the past two decades.
Levy County Sheriff and Florida Sheriff’s Association President Bobby McCallum said that’s evidence the law is working.
“The Sheriffs of Florida have created proven policies and best practices that have stood the test of time, and many of those have led to our historically low crime level,” he said. “Among those tools are the Prison Release Reoffender law, which keeps the most dangerous repeat offenders off our streets and contributes significantly to public safety.”
Walton County Sheriff and FSRI Committee Chair Michael Adkinson added, “Reverting to outdated policies that allow for releasing habitual offenders early is a first step toward a return of the high crime that sparked Florida’s Legislature to enact the Prison Release Reoffender law in the first place. Mandatory sentence policies targeting the most dangerous, repeat offenders are used in every state, and these policies are a key factor to Florida’s low crime rate.”
Evening Reads
“First U.S. case of COVID-19 omicron variant confirmed in California” via Michael Balsamo and Zeke Miller of The Associated Press
“Nikki Fried is willing to break ranks with Joe Biden over omicron response” via Jason Delgado of Florida Politics
“Gov. Ron DeSantis seeks election fraud crackdown but ignores dark money-backed sham candidates” via Gray Rohrer of the Orlando Sentinel
“What abortion laws would look like if Roe v. Wade were overturned” via Daniela Santamariña of The Washington Post
“Michael Grieco files ‘Greyson’s Law’ to add protections for children at risk of parental harm” via Jesse Scheckner of Florida Politics
“House panel doubles down on cryptocurrency regulation” via Renzo Downey of Florida Politics
“Joe Gruters dines with Sydney Powell, hears out election integrity claims” via Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics
“The Herald built a computer model to explore how Surfside tower fell. Here’s what it showed” via Dawn E. Lehman and Sarah Blaskey of the Miami Herald
“Is Florida really the safest state in the U.S. for COVID-19?” via David Schutz of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
“As Florida house prices climb, demand increases for manufactured homes” via Emily L. Mahoney of the Tampa Bay Times
“How leisure time became work” via Shirley Li of The Atlantic
“Democrats stretch voter advantage in Jacksonville City Council Special Election” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
Quote of the Day
“Never did I think that, in 2021, I would still be fighting for the right to make my own choices about pregnancy. But we do it because we know what is at stake. The constitutional right to an abortion must be upheld by SCOTUS and Congress must act to codify these protections, too.” — Rep. Anna Eskamani, on a Supreme Court case that could overturn Roe v. Wade.
Bill Day’s Latest
Breakthrough Insights
