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Saving tax dollars: can an innovative program make big cuts in America's prison population?
The number of inmates in American prisons is outpacing the system's
ability to hold them all. In one startling example, California
prisons hold more than 50,000 more inmates than they're
designed for, even though the state has built a dozen new prisons
in the last 15 years. One of the biggest reasons is rampant
recidivism.
NOW goes inside an Illinois prison that may have the answer to
California's problems. With its innovative plan to keep released
inmates from coming back, the Sheridan Correctional Center is
trying to redefine "tough on crime" by being the largest fully
dedicated drug prison in the country. The approach involves
aggressive counseling, job training and following the convicts
after they get out. Can their novel approach keep convicts out of
jail for good?