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Virginia Legal News

Should elderly Virginia prison inmates be released to nursing homes?


Posted on Sep 30, 2010

As Virginia’s prison population continues to age, a question keeps coming up: should elderly residents who no longer present a threat to society be released to live with family members or in Virginia nursing homes?

 

There are about 5,000 inmates in Virginia living in prison in a nursing-home like state.  Critics of the prison system claim that it costs about $10,000 extra per prisoner to care for elderly inmates.  The state would save money, they argue, if these frail and infirm prisoners were released to family members and facilities better able to care for them.

 

Those who oppose this idea of parole for elderly inmates point out that most non-violent offenders are in fact released on parole.  It is the violent offenders who have committed serious crimes who are left behind bars – the price society requires they pay for the crimes they have committed.

 

One way that Virginia prisons keep the costs of caring for elderly inmates down is to require younger inmates to care for them.  The younger inmates are paid a small amount per hour to push wheelchairs and help out with basic tasks.  This work often causes younger inmates to consider the path they are on, as one day they too will age and may eventually end up being cared for by young prisoners.

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