**LEAD STORY**
According to a study recently released by the Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, locking up criminals in prison saves society money in the long run. The study conducted by the San Francisco-based, privately funded, think tank indicated that justice officials in California do not incarcerate enough criminals and do not sentence criminals long enough, at the present time.
The study was written by Steven Hayward, who is the vice president of research of the institute and by Lance T. Izumi, a senior research fellow. They said in the report, "Numerous studies show that the social costs of crime far exceed the cost of incarceration."
The report said that by locking up convicted criminals in prison crime is deterred simply by preventing them from committing additional offenses. This collaborates the long-standing analysis that ERRI analysts have given as to what is the true reason for the recent decline in crime statistics mainly in the larger cities in the U.S. ERRI has long contended that crime has dropped because criminals are being sentenced for longer periods of time and while in prison, are unable to commit additional crimes.
This recent study estimated that for every dollar that is spent keeping a criminal in prison saves up to $2.80 in the cost of crimes the felons would commit if they were on the street.
The authors of the report wrote, "It suggests that 'three strikes' and similar measures that will impose longer prison sentences will yield substantial social cost-savings to California."
An example estimate of $5 billion in cost of implementing the 'three strike' law was given. The study said that if it costs $5 billion to keep the criminals behind bars, then "Californians can look forward to savings of $10 billion to $14 billion a year, simply from incapacitating criminals."
There have been critics to California's new "three strikes" law. The law is designed to make sure that criminals who have been found guilty of two or more serious felonies receive long prison sentences. Critics say that the law is only being used against offenders who commit minor crimes or those who have been convicted of drug abuse. The critics say that the "three strike" law will flood the prison system with petty criminals.
The Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy disagrees with the assessment of the critics of the law. The study showed that of the slightly more than 1,000 people who have received a sentence of 25 years or more during the first 20 months that the new law was put into effect, the vast majority of the offenders who were convicted were for committing the kinds of serious offenses for which the law was intended.
The study said, "Three strikes is netting exactly the kind of repeat offenders for which it was intended, despite criticisms that 'minor' offenders are being sentenced under the law." One thing is clear, repeat offenders who are in jail can't commit additional crimes.
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