By Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services via Arizona Capitol Times
Two state lawmakers hope to do what has proven politically impossible for decades: Convince colleagues to consider sentencing reform.
Reps. David Stringer, R-Prescott, and Kirsten Engel, D-Tucson, are heading a group to look at why Arizona locks up a higher proportion of people than all but four other states.
Related: Judge calls Arizona prison health care system ‘corrupt’
“You have to go to the Deep South to find higher rates,” Stringer told Capitol Media Services. And Stringer, a former criminal defense attorney, questions whether having more than 42,000 people in state prisons is justified.
“People in Arizona are not that bad,” he said.
