Letter: Ensign off base with 'inmate reform' proposal

I read with considerable interest and bemusement the May 21 article concerning the "inmate reform" proposed by Rep. John Ensign. I served as a deputy attorney general in Nevada for five years, representing the Nevada Department of Prisons.

I handled the major class-action lawsuits from 1989-1994, including several that went to trial, all of which the state of Nevada won. I drafted legislation on the local and national level on prison reform; I lobbied in the state Legislature and Congress on prison legislation; I sat on numerous task forces on prison issues.

In other words, I have considerable experience and knowledge on prison issues from the perspective of the state. Believe me, I am no friend of inmates and their frivolous litigation.

To put it simply and bluntly, Ensign does not know what he is doing or talking about regarding prison reform. He stated: "I want to see an end to federal judges turning violent prisoners loose on Nevada streets."

This quote is in reference to his desire to prevent federal judges from releasing inmates because of overcrowding. There has never been an instance in the history of the state of Nevada in which a federal judge ordered the release of a single inmate in any prison in Nevada because of overcrowding. I know this because I have represented the state of Nevada in such lawsuits and won every one of them.

Ensign wants inmates to work and pay back their victims. This requirement already exists in Nevada. Indeed, Nevada has long been a leader in the country for such requirements -- in fact, we were the first state to require inmates to pay for their incarceration, including housing, clothing, medical care and so forth.

Ensign wants to see an end to inmate privileges. Yet, what privileges is he talking about? Inmates in Nevada must pay for any privileges they may get, and they do not get many.

Sen. Harry Reid has carried many bills on prison reform, including legislation reducing inmate litigation, serial criminal appeals, etc. Reid has long been an effective advocate of prison reform. In fact, during my tenure in the attorney general's office, I worked long, fruitful hours with Reid and his staff on prison legislation. As Nevadans, we should all be proud of Reid's efforts.

The only result I can see of Ensign's proposed legislation is creation of another costly federal bureaucracy with a mandate to interfere with the rights and obligations of state authority. I doubt Nevada needs another federal law interfering with its rights.

Marc P. Cardinalli

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