Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - May 6, 1999
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136

Locke signs bill to make communities safer

OLYMPIA — Gov. Gary Locke today signed the Offender Accountability Act, a bill that will make communities safer by increasing the state's authority to supervise offenders in the community after they have completed their prison or jail terms.

"Nothing is more important than keeping our communities safe," Locke said. "Today, we have taken decisive steps to help families protect themselves and their children from offenders —people who, according to study after study, are likely to commit their crimes again and again."

Abolishing parole in the early 1980s brought truth in sentencing, but weakened state authority to supervise offenders after release. More than 50,000 convicted felons currently reside in communities around the state, compared to 14,000 in prison.

"With the Offender Accountability Act that I'm signing today, we will have the tools to hold convicted felons more accountable after they have been released from prison and have returned to our communities," Locke said.

The Offender Accountability Act (E2SSB 5421) will:

- assign community corrections officers to neighborhoods where offenders live and work.

- focus resources on supervising high-risk offenders.
allow the courts and the Department of Corrections to set conditions — such as drug treatment and daily reporting — on a greater number of released offenders.

- authorize punishment for violations of these conditions without having to go back to court.

- improve computerized tracking of offenders, allowing officers to spend more time actively supervising offenders.

» Return to this month's News Releases

» View News Release Archive