Political Quotes

John Glenn: Forty-nine percent of the prisoners in our States are nonviolent prisoners. They could just as well be put in low-cost…

On the recordMarch 11, 1994
Forty-nine percent of the prisoners in our States are nonviolent prisoners. They could just as well be put in low-cost facilities, whether inflatable dome structures or Quonset huts or Butler buildings, like millions of Americans have lived in for many years of their lives. I had an amendment in the crime bill that advocated States looking at this and trying to put as many prisoners as possible into that type of facility. We are doing a little bit of that in Ohio now. I talked to the Governor about it a couple of years ago, as a matter of fact, and they are now using some of these inflatable structures, like we see used for tennis facilities in the country. We could get people in and keep them in. I saw a TV program where, I believe, in the State of North Carolina, of the sentences given to prisoners, one-twelfth of the sentence is the average served. It makes a mockery out of our criminal justice system.
Said by
John Glenn
Ohio

Editor's note · Context

Discussing nonviolent prisoners and alternatives to traditional incarceration during debate on the crime bill.

Share

More from John Glenn

Jan 26, 1994

Mr. President, this is obviously a very emotional issue with a lot of people, and we come to this debate with a lot of people having feelings that go back many years and with friends left behind in Vietnam. It brings back recollections of…

govinfo.gov
Mar 10, 1994

I want to make clear I am entirely in favor of some of this regulatory relief that hits small businesses, hits small governments, hits them hard. We are moving in that direction. We have several pieces of legislation. I know the Senator…

govinfo.gov
May 6, 2009

You want to keep them guessing as to what the response may be if they do something dumb and attack us.

congress.gov
May 5, 1994

I find the idea that someone could come in and buy our vote here to be totally repugnant. This discredits our labors and only further undermines and demeans this institution. But I recognize that in the world of politics sometimes what is…

govinfo.gov

Other voices in this conversation