In my criminology class a couple of weeks ago, the issue of "furlough" was brought up. This is when a prisoner who has been convicted of a crime and who is in jail, is granted with the opportunity to go out in public, unsupervised, for a period of time. Willie Horton, who was granted furlough and who was also in prison for murder, never came back. Upon his escape, Horton killed a man and his fiance, on top of other crimes. The link below provides other examples of convicts who have gotten out on furlough, and committed numerous crimes while on this "prison vacation." What do you think about this policy?
http://www.forerunner.com/forerunner/X0158_Dukakis__Willie_Hort.html
I think furlough is the dumbest policy ever! Why would they think letting criminals, who were put in jail for a reason, out makes sense? The case of Willie Horton is a perfect example of why this policy should not exist and doesn't. Even though the inmates had "good behavior" in prison, if they knew they could qualify for furlough, why wouldn't they act good? If I had an easy chance out of prison, I'd probably be on my best behavior too. Although there are certain qualifications in order to be awarded a furlough (rather than just good behavior) I still think it's too dangerous to society. I found an article from last year giving some good information about furloughs and why they may seem like a good idea, but I'm still against them.
http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200905/1241694352.html