Sex Offenders Must Wait
April 5th, 2009
Some of the 865 male sex offenders in the New Hampshire state prison system are being held past their parole dates because there are just 90 spots in the treatment program most of them must take.
One man told the Concord Monitor that he wasn’t allowed to apply for the 18-month program until a year after he became eligible for parole. Keeping an inmate in prison one year past his parole date costs about $30,000, versus $800 for a year of parole.
Prison officials acknowledge the backlog but say some prisoners cause the delay themselves. Sex offenders can’t begin the program until they admit to their offense and those who misbehave while enrolled can get kicked out of the program.