Residents paying for the skyrocketing crime rates of New Mexico!
New Mexico has once again earned the ignominy of being the most dangerous state in the country with crime rates that are significantly higher than the national average. Nearly 1200 additional crimes occur in the state for every 100,000 residents than in any other part of the country or even in the nation as a whole. Not only does this expose the residents to significant risks, but it is also costing taxpayers dearly.
The Department of Corrections of NM spends about $110 a day to keep a criminal incarcerated and about $10 for ever parolee. Earlier this year, there were more than 7000 prisoners in state run facilities and well over 17,000 under supervised release. That is a massive cost of over $900,000 every day and nearly $330 million annually, but that is just the state correctional spending. A similar amount is also spent to keep about 8000 people in county jails each year.
The correctional authorities are trying to remedy the situation by imposing the law for mandatory completion of GED for all prisoners. Most are found to have grade school reading skills, well below those needed to apply for a job. These efforts are aimed at lowering the rate of recidivism. Unfortunately, the median time of incarceration which has increased significantly in recent years threatens to undermine the efficacy of the reforms program.