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• FLORIDA CAPITOL NEWS
FLORIDA - Hundreds of corrections, probation and parole officers worried about their jobs demonstrated in Tallahassee today.
66 probation officers were laid off in January, and more layoffs could be on the way.
66 parole and probation officers cut loose in January were fired because the Department of Corrections is over budget. Fewer officers, mean higher case loads.
Sot: Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, "You can't keep me safe if you got 1,201,304,050 people to monitor."
One of the 66 let go was Brian Seals.
"No more cuts"
Brian joined several hundred other officers at the state Capitol who are worried tight budgets could mean their jobs too.
Brian Seals, Corrections Officer, "There was no indication that this was coming up. We were called on Thursday and told Friday afternoon we are laid off."
One good sign is the growth in the prison population is slowing. Still the state is planning more prisons.
Gretl Plessinger, Corrections Spokesperson, "We had originally thought we would have to build nineteen prisons over the next five years. But the Criminal Justice estimating conference, their latest estimates show we are not growing as fast."
Money spent on hundred million dollar prisons can't be spent on salaries.
"One alternative is to identify inmates who got busted here, have no ties to Florida and ship them out."
The man in charge of prison funding says it helps Florida and other states.
Sen. Victor Crist, R-Tampa, "It helps them because it gives them cash flow for beds that wouldn't otherwise be productive, and it helps us because that means we don't have to build an expensive cell."
As the officers swarmed the capitol, they found sympathetic lawmakers, but few who would promise that more cuts and higher caseloads weren't on the way.
Brian seals will begin work next week as a correctional officer at a prison in Volusia County.
He would prefer to be on the outside supervising parolees.
66 probation officers were laid off in January, and more layoffs could be on the way.
66 parole and probation officers cut loose in January were fired because the Department of Corrections is over budget. Fewer officers, mean higher case loads.
Sot: Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, "You can't keep me safe if you got 1,201,304,050 people to monitor."
One of the 66 let go was Brian Seals.
"No more cuts"
Brian joined several hundred other officers at the state Capitol who are worried tight budgets could mean their jobs too.
Brian Seals, Corrections Officer, "There was no indication that this was coming up. We were called on Thursday and told Friday afternoon we are laid off."
One good sign is the growth in the prison population is slowing. Still the state is planning more prisons.
Gretl Plessinger, Corrections Spokesperson, "We had originally thought we would have to build nineteen prisons over the next five years. But the Criminal Justice estimating conference, their latest estimates show we are not growing as fast."
Money spent on hundred million dollar prisons can't be spent on salaries.
"One alternative is to identify inmates who got busted here, have no ties to Florida and ship them out."
The man in charge of prison funding says it helps Florida and other states.
Sen. Victor Crist, R-Tampa, "It helps them because it gives them cash flow for beds that wouldn't otherwise be productive, and it helps us because that means we don't have to build an expensive cell."
As the officers swarmed the capitol, they found sympathetic lawmakers, but few who would promise that more cuts and higher caseloads weren't on the way.
Brian seals will begin work next week as a correctional officer at a prison in Volusia County.
He would prefer to be on the outside supervising parolees.
FLORIDA CAPITOL NEWS ENTRY FORM
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