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Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Dakota laws address avoiding criminal charges, improving life after jail
North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong, center, held a signing ceremony April 29, 2025, for three justice reform bills. Seated with Armstrong were bill sponsor Rep. Lawrence Klemin, R-Bismarck, right, and co-sponsor Rep. Karla Rose Hanson, D-Fargo. (Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor) North Dakota officials on Tuesday described new legislation as improving 'off-ramps' from the criminal justice system, with one of the off-ramps coming before offenders get into the court system. 'We know that people who get into the criminal justice system tend to stay there,' said Tom Erhardt, director for parole and probation within the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. He said by improving the off-ramps, it will reduce the number of crime victims, reduce the number of repeat offenders and save the state money. North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Tuesday had a signing ceremony for three criminal justice reform bills, trying to keep people out of the court system, making it easier for them to comply with probation and helping former inmates integrate into society. The bills were based in part on a study conducted after the 2023 legislative session and a collaboration with the corrections department and the Department of Health and Human Services. 'Given the volume of support from prosecutors, public safety officers, community partners and several state agencies throughout the legislative process, it's clear that these policies move our criminal justice system in the right direction,' said Rep. Lawrence Klemin, R-Bismarck, the sponsor of the three bills. Erhardt said he thinks House Bill 1425, which focuses on diversion and deflection, has the potential to be the most impactful. It provides $1 million for a pilot program in three counties to be selected by the corrections department. The county state's attorney would be able to develop a program focused on keeping people out of jail, using tools such as mental health and substance abuse services. Law enforcement could be part of the deflection process. The counties will report back on the pilot program before the start of the 2027 legislative session. The bill includes $750,000 through the Department of Health and Human Services for mental health services. 'We have crisis centers around the state, through our human service centers, where someone can come in and get withdrawal management or detox or get assessed for mental health, they may never have to go to the jail,' said Pam Sagness, executive director of the behavioral health division of HHS. House Bill 1417 would eliminate fees for people on supervised release. Not paying those fees can lead to a return to jail. The fees are also seen as a burden for low-income people. The corrections department bills about $6 million in supervision fees per biennium with a collection rate of around 25% or $1.5 million. Legislative Management may also do a study of court fines and fees before the next legislative session. Trio of bills addresses justice reform, crowded North Dakota jails The third bill, House Bill 1549, would create a grant program for local jails for programs that help people adjust after being released from jail, referred to as reentry. 'Most jails don't have anything set up for reentry,' Colby Braun, director of the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said after the ceremony. 'When you're done, the clothes you came in with, that's pretty much what you leave with.' The corrections department would assist with getting a driver's license or identification card and getting Medicaid or other assistance through the Department of Health and Human Services. The grants from the corrections department would help local jails set up a reentry program. 'So this is really focusing on those local jails to say, 'Hey, if you guys want to build something up, we've got some dollars,'' Braun said. The bill also creates a task force to study housing issues for people leaving jail and a possible study of criminal record sealing and expungement. The diversion and deflection bill will take effect July 1; the other bills will take effect Aug. 1. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Prison sentencing bill revised, adds study of North Dakota justice system
Rep. Lawrence Klemin, R-Bismarck, leads a meeting of the House Judiciary Committee on March 24, 2025. (Kyle Martin/For the North Dakota Monitor) A committee passed amendments and removed a key provision in a contentious prison sentencing bill Monday. The House Judiciary Committee still gave Senate Bill 2128 a do-not-pass recommendation. Committee chair Rep. Lawrence Klemin, R-Bismarck, who authored some of the amendments to the bill, said it wasn't clear how the changes would affect the cost estimate of the bill. Klemin said his intention was that a new cost estimate would be generated for the bill. North Dakota attorney general calls for more prison time; opponents say spend more on police The original intent of the bill, which came from North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley's office, was to ensure that criminals housed by the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spend more of their sentence behind bars. The fiscal note tied to the original bill estimated the cost to the state at $22.7 million in the 2025-27 biennium and $21.3 million for the following two years. North Dakota's prison system is already overcrowded and Rep. Steve Vetter, R-Grand Forks, wondered how the original bill could be workable. 'Where are these people going to go?' Vetter asked, adding that there is no plan to build more prison space. Colby Braun, director of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, has contended that the original bill would cut off access to rehabilitation programs and halfway houses. The amendments remove a key provision requiring that offenders serve at least 50% of their sentence behind bars before being eligible for a halfway house or parole. The amendments include ensuring that prisoners are eligible to go into a halfway house for the last six months of their sentences and adding money for electronic monitoring bracelets and penalties for tampering with an electronic monitoring device. The amendments passed on a 8-5 vote. A do-not-pass recommendation made by Rep. Bill Tveit, R-Hazen, passed 9-5. Tveit resisted the Klemin amendments as continuing a soft-on-crime policy and said the state can afford the costs of sending prisoners to another state if North Dakota doesn't have room. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The amended bill gives Legislative Management the option to study parole and the state corrections system. 'The parole board is a really big player and we haven't heard from them,' Klemin said. Klemin said the amended bill could be a bridge until the studies could provide legislators with more guidance. The bill still includes additional penalties for fleeing and assaulting officers. The amendments will need to be approved on the House floor. If approved the bill will likely be heard in the House Appropriations Committee next week, according to committee chair Rep. Don Vigesaa, R-Cooperstown. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House approves resolution making it harder to change North Dakota Constitution
A voter fills out a ballot at the Hillside Aquatic Complex in Bismarck on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) A resolution advanced by the North Dakota House on Wednesday seeks to raise the voter-approval threshold for ballot measures that would amend the state constitution. But even if the state Senate supports the measure, the decision will still be up to voters to decide. The House voted 65-28 in favor of House Concurrent Resolution 3003, which proposes that ballot measures to amend the state constitution need approval from 60% of voters rather than a simple majority. More 2025 legislative session coverage Under the proposal, the higher threshold would apply to citizen-initiated ballot measures, as well as constitutional measures placed on the ballot by lawmakers. Supporters said North Dakota's constitution is too easy to change, leaving it vulnerable to influence by out-of-state special interest groups. 'I'm afraid, in my opinion, that North Dakota's getting a reputation that it is a state that can be bought,' said Rep. Lawrence Klemin, R-Bismarck. Rep. Eric Murphy, R-Grand Forks, said he finds it odd that local school building referendums require a higher threshold of voter approval than changes to the state constitution. House Majority Leader Mike Lefor, R-Dickinson, said a 60% approval threshold 'underscores the importance and gravity' of changing the constitution. Resolution proposes to change constitutional ballot measure vote threshold to 60% Rep. Lori VanWinkle, R-Minot, said the higher threshold won't deter well-funded campaigns from attempting to influence the constitution, but it will hinder citizen efforts. 'It really is going to stop the grassroots movement from accomplishing anything,' VanWinkle said. House Minority Leader Zac Ista, D-Grand Forks, urged House members to vote no and trust the voters. He pointed out that if the resolution is on the ballot, it would only need support from a simple majority to pass. In November, North Dakota voters defeated Measure 2, which contained several changes to the citizen-initiated measure process, including limiting measures to a single subject, requiring that voters approve measures twice and increasing the percentage of signatures required to place a measure on the ballot. The resolution advances to the Senate for further consideration. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
