KTLA News: "Recommendations to reform the prison system" (1972)

I take these dark glasses. Might >> as well. I think I would. Yeah. [Music] >> Mr. Irwin, what reforms do you recommend? >> Well, the first thing we have to do to change our prison system is reduce the length of sentence. The problem in our prisons today is that we have selected out out of the many many lawb breakakers in our society a few. And we've selected them out very discriminatorily. It's the it's the poor, the disadvantaged, the minority groups who are selected out. Not because they're more serious lawb breakakers, but because they're just less powerful. And then when we select them out, we have heaped punishment upon them. And this is not only harmful to them, this is harmful to society because we ruin them. We them. They come back even more embittered. One one reason is because the long sentences. The other reason is because they have been they've seen the discrimination in the system. So we have to make the system both fair all the way through. We have to punish them fairly. We have to first admit that it's punishment that which we're doing to them. So I recommend the first thing we do is reduce drastically the length of sentences where we're making our prisoners serve. Particularly in a state like California. California in the in the last decade has been among the top or the top in length of sentences every year. Now, what prospects are there of this happening >> right now? Very few. >> But at the moment, for those who are in the prison, >> I would I would in California get rid of the indeterminate sentence system to abolish it. it. Uh I would go back to a flat time system, not given back to the judges, but flat time system where the time is spelled out in the in the legislation in the in the law. But the we in order to do this, we would have to return to a to a flat time statues which were very which were reduced considerably. It is wouldn't be safe to do that right now, not with a public climate, but it's a direction for us to move in. Are there any other specific suggestions uh as far as prison life that could be corrected? >> Yes, on a voluntary basis we should make available services for a person to help himself such as job training, such as education, such as any kind of therapy that he wants to engage in. The mistake of our system right now is that we try and devise helping strategies for them, not even considering whether they want it or not or whether they will participate in it and force them into it. This has been this has been counterproductive. This hasn't worked. But certainly we have to expand the number of services which are available at their discretion. This is this would would further some of the goals society itself wants to accomplish such as reducing crime such as simply because the person would not be forced back into a life of crime when he got out. >> Won't answer. I'll just ask this. What other changes would you make in the present prison system? >> Doesn't matter. >> Now, what about the men in prison now? How would you change uh what about the men in prison now? What changes could be made to help them? [Music]