September 30, 1992 BUSH VERSUS CLINTON: FIGHTING CRIME BUSH: CLINTON: Increasing Federal Investment  President Bush has proposed a 59% increase in federal spending to fight crime and has proposed a total of over $15.8 billion next year to build new prisons, expand enforcement of laws, and improve interdiction of drugs, (1993 Budget of the U.S. Government). Clinton's Arkansas: Still at the Bottom  Arkansas ranks 49th in per capita spending on police protection, and 50th in total state and local justice system per capita expenditures. Building and Expanding Prisons  Since 1989, President Bush has spent over $2 billion to build new prison space, nearly doubling bed space in federal and state prisons from 31.7 million beds to an estimated 53.4 million by 1993, (1993 Budget of the U.S. Government). Small Investment in Prisons  Arkansas ranks 46th in per capita corrections spending. In 1985, the Arkansas Department of Corrections sought a $39 million increase to cover its swelling prison population, (Arkansas Gazette, 11/28/84). Clinton rejected almost all of the requested increase. Ultimately, the Corrections Department received a budget hike totalling just $1.1 million, (Arkansas State Budgets, FY 83-85 and FY 85-87). Tough Legislation to Fight Violent Crime  Under the Reagan and Bush Administrations, the national violent crime rate has risen 27%, (Crime in the United States, Federal Bureau of Investigations, 1991). -- To combat this problem, President Bush has sought a tough crime bill with stronger sentencing, including the death penalty, and an end to excessive appeals and legal technicalities that let criminals go free. High Rate of Violent Crime  Arkansas' violent crime rate has climbed much faster than the national average, soaring 58%. Arkansas' violent crime rate is now one of the worst in the U.S. The Declining U.S. Crime Rate  During the Reagan and Bush Administrations, the nation's overall crime rate fell by one percent, (Crime in the United States, Federal Bureau of Investigations, 1991). Arkansas' Soaring Crime  During the 1980s, Arkansas' serious crime rate jumped nearly 28% -- the worst increase in the nation. Crimes Against Women  During the 1980s, the average number of rapes committed nationally increased 4.4%, (State and Metropolitan Area Data Book, 1991). Arkansas' Increasing Number of Rapes  During the same time period, rapes in Arkansas increased 42.3% -- the 8th fastest out of 50 states and the District of Columbia and nearly ten times the national average, (State and Metropolitan Area Data Book, 1991). Tough Sentencing  Because of tough Reagan and Bush policies, the number of criminals convicted of federal crimes jumped 63% from 1980 to 1990. Of those convicted, more than twice as many were sentenced to prison in 1990 as were sentenced in 1980 and to 30% more time (Federal Criminal Case Processing, October 1991). -- Federal inmates serve at more than 85 percent of their full sentence. -- Under President Bush, the average sentence for federally-convicted drug dealers has increased by 40%. Drug criminals now spend on average six and a half years in prison. Hard Crime, Easy Time  Arkansas state inmates serve, on average, less than 20 percent of their original sentence. Almost no inmate, including violent offenders, serves a full sentence. # # #