A recent quote from Sen. John Whitmire, Chair of Criminal Justice, in talking about the proposed sex offender bills:

"At the end of the day, I think they [prosecutors] have tremendous say and influence," Whitmire said. "The (prosecutors) have to take what we pass and apply it in court and crime victims have to know we have their interests at stake."

Does this same opinion apply to probation reform?

Yes, it does, absolutely.

Note that Whitmire did not say that "at the end of the day . . . crime victims have to know we have their best interests at heart," which is how the cliche is usually said. Had he said that, it would have been a dishonest statement, since probation reform is a way of saving the state govt. money, at the expense of crime victims.

What he said was, "at the end of the day . . . . crime victims have to know we have their interests at stake." No truer words were ever spoken. Because if "probation reform" is passed, and becomes law, crime victims will take it on the neck. They have a lot at stake in "probation reform."

If the legislature is serious about crime victims, it will build more prisons. Prisons work. According to DPS records, Texas' crime rate rose 362% between 1964 and 1988. Since Texas's big prison boom, 1987--1997, which more than tripled prison capacity, the crime rate has dropped about 61%.

But the prisons are full, and contrary to what some legislators want to believe, it's not full of errant Boy Scouts who were only 15 minutes late reporting to probation. It is full of very serious, often dangerous, criminals. And it is time we built some more prisons.

TDCJ only accounts for 1.8% of the State budget. I think we can afford a few more prisons.

1.8% of state budget!!! Anyone have a breakdown of the state budget to place that percentage in context? The current percentage for TDCJ seems incredibly low. Also, it seems to speak volumes about the legislature's concern for law and order in practice. What am I missing?